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Received        JAN     6    1893    .  1S9 
Accessions  No.l\<^^Tl    •  Class  No. 


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EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS 


A  COLLECTION 


FROM  MANY  WRITERS  (CHIEFLY  MODERN)  OF  THOUGHTS 

BEARING  ON  EDUCATIONAL  QUESTIONS  OF 

THE  DAY. 


BY 

THOMAS   J.    MORGAN, 

Principal  Rhode  Island  State  Normal  School. 


BOSTON : 


SILVER,  ROGERS,  &  CO.,  PUBLISHERS, 

50  Bromfield  Street. 

1887. 


Copyright,  1887,  by 
SILVER,  ROGERS,  &  COMPANY. 


J.  S.  CusHiNG  &  Co.,  Printers,  Boston. 


PREFATORY  NOTE. 


o^^c 


The  thought  of  compiling  a  volume  of  choice  selections  from 
different  educational  writers  is  by  no  means  a  new  one  to  me.  I 
have  long  had  it  in  mind,  and  have  been  deterred  from  the  attempt 
partly  by  the  labor  involved  in  copying,  and  partly  by  a  steady  pres- 
sure of  regular  work.  But  —  thanks  to  the  type-writer  and  to  one 
whose  industry  is  only  surpassed  by  her  skill  and  good  taste  —  the 
thought  has  at  last  become  a  reality,  and  all  that  remains  is  a  pref- 
atory note,  a  sort  of  inscription  over  the  portal,  for  the  information 
of  those  who  look  within. 

Let  me  say  frankly  that  it  makes  no  high  pretensions.  It  is  not 
a  pedagogical  encyclopaedia  in  any  sense  of  the  word,  nor  does  it 
profess  to  be  exhaustive  in  any  direction.  It  is  very  far  from  being 
a  systematic  treatise  on  education  ;  on  the  contrary,  I  have  aimed 
to  avoid  any  rigid  philosophical  arrangement,  and  have  purposely 
omitted  any  bibliographical  or  biographical  notes,  as  being  foreign 
to  its  simple  character  and  aim.  I  cannot  claim  that  every  good 
writer  is  represented,  or  that  each  is  represented  by  his  best.  I 
have  been  constantly  embarrassed  by  the  abundance  of  riches,  and 
sorely  perplexed  what  to  leave  out.  It  would  have  been  easier  to 
make  a  Volume  of  twice  the  size ;  and,  should  another  edition  be 
called  for,  considerable  additions  may  be  made. 

All  that  is  claimed  for  the  volume  is,  that  everything  in  it  is  worth 
reading. 

Those  who  are  acquainted  with  educational  literature  will  recog- 
nize many  familiar  paragraphs  and  favorite  passages. 


4  PREFATORY  NOTE. 

Those  who  lack  either  opportunity,  time,  or  inclination  to  read 
the  numerous  writings  on  Education,  and  who  still  desire  to  know 
something  of  the  drift  of  educational  thought,  will  find  it  here  in 
brief  compass. 

Those  who  love  beautiful  thoughts  on  great  themes  will  meet 
with  many  such  in  these  mosaics. 

Teachers  who  have  a  few  leisure  moments,  interspersed  with  hard 
hours  of  toil,  will  find  much  to  interest,  to  comfort,  to  stimulate, 
and  to  help. 

While  especially  designed  for  teachers,  it  is  full  of  thought-pro- 
voking matter  for  the  intelligent  parent,  and  for  all  those  who  are 
interested  in  that  greatest  of  all  living  questions  —  the  proper  edu- 
cation of  the  ten  million  youth  of  America  who,  in  our  private  and 
public  schools,  are  being  trained  for  life's  duties,  pleasures,  and 

privileges. 

T.  J.  M. 

Providence,  R.I.,  July,  1887. 


CONTENTS. 


The  brief  selections  without  titles  are  omitted  from  this  table.    See  List  of  Authors. 


Special  Aptitudes Matthew  Arnold 15 

The  Living,  not  the  Dead Charles  F.  Adams ,  Jr 16 

Legislators  and  Education Aristotle 17 

Inspiration  Better  than  Instruction Martin  B.  Anderson 18 

Of  Teaching  History Herbert  B.  Adams 19 

Attainable  Ends Sarah  Austin 21 

Linguistic  Study  and  Real  Knowledge.  .Martin  B.  Anderson 21 

Study  of  Political  Science /.  W.  Andrews 23 

Of  Co-education James  B.  Angell 23 

Talking  and  Learning Roger  Ascham 25 

The  Best  Talent  for  Secondary  Schools.  .Joseph  Alden 25 

Fetich  Worship Charles  F.  Adams,  Jr 26 

The  Instinct  for  Beauty Matthew  Arnold 28 

Severe  Study Jacob  Abbott 29 

Tvv^o  Aspects  of  Industrial  Education ....  Felix  Adler 30 

Public  versus  Private  Education Thomas  Arnold 31 

Education  of  the  Negro  a  Success S.  C.  Armstrong 32 

News-rooms  and  Libraries Duke  of  Argyll 32 

Polished  Marble Joseph   Addison T^^i 

Music  and  the  Greeks Oscar  Browning 34 

Fiction  and  Education Alexander  Bain 34 

Chairs  of  Didactics J.  Baldwin 35 

For  Two  Worlds   Henry  Barnard 36 

Proper  Text-Books Albert  G.  Boyden 37 

Slowly  Ripened  Fruit George  Bancroft 38 

Of  Philosophy John  Bascom 38 

Knowledge  for  Pains Isaac  Barrozu 39 

Indigestible  Knowledge E.  E.  Bowen 39 

The  Kindergarten Baroness  Bulow 41 

Children  and  Nature J.  B.  Basedow 42 


6  CONTENTS, 

PAGE 

The  English  Language  and  Literature. . . Eugene  Bouton 43 

The  Dignity  of  History George  Bancroft 44 

Single-stringed  Methods J'  R-  Buchanan 45 

Of  Learning Francis  Bacon 45 

Development  of  Individuality C.  W.  Bardeen 46 

Self,  not  Ancestors Sir   Thomas  Browne 47 

Ideal  School  Officers Thomas  W.  Bicknell 48 

Dwarfed  Faculties F.  A.  P.  Barnard 48 

All  Complete H.   W.  Beecher 49 

How  I  was  Educated S.  C.  Bartlett 49 

Teaching  a  Fine  Art Edivard  Brooks 50 

Inspire  a  Love  of  Knowledge E.  E.  Bowen 51 

The  Teacher  Taught Samuel  T.  Coleridge 53 

Moral  Lessons  Incidentally Elizabeth  B.  Chace 54 

Application Caroline  F.  Cormvallis 55 

Prodigies Condillac 55 

Things,  not  their  Shadows J.  A  Co7nenius 55 

Intellectual  Force W.  E.  Channing 56 

Theory  and  Practice James  Freeman  Clarke 57 

Moral  Teachings  of  History James  Currie 58 

Diligence Thomas  Carlyle 59 

Marcus  Aurelius Gabriel  Compayre 60 

Examining   Boards J.  W.  Corthell 61 

The  Country's  Requirements Cicero 62 

How  I  learned  Oratory Henry  Clay 62 

Essentials  First Paul  A.  Chadbourne 63 

Of  Books W.  E.  Channing 63 

The  Problem , . .  Condorcet 64 

Grecian  Pedagogy Gabriel  Compayre 65 

The  New  Civilization Charles  Carleton  Coffin 65 

Value  of  Knowledge Cicero 66 

Object-teaching N.  A.  Calkins 66 

Save  us  from  Routine Henry  Calderwood 68 

Experience  and  Observation W.  E.  Channing 69 

Activity  Necessary Condillac 69 

Dangers  of  the  Elective  System Franklin  Carter 69 

The  Statesman's  Care. N.  H.  R.  Datvson 70 

The  Teacher's  Opportunity Timothy  Divight 71 

Degrading  the  PubHc  Schools J.  W.  Dickinson   72 

Oral  Instruction Larkin  Dunton 73 


COJVTEATTS.  y 

PAGE 

Art  Study M.  A.  Dwight * 74 

Recent  History G.  Dieslerweg 75 

Difficult  Work  Needed J.  W.  Dickinson 75 

Contact  with  Pupils Henry  Darling 76 

A  Habit  of  Work Dupanlotip 77 

Practical  and  Classical  Culture S.  T.  Dutton 77 

The  Position  of  Honor A.  W.  Edson 79 

Man's  Three  Teachers Edivard  Everett 79 

Thinking  Alone Ralph  Waldo  Emerson 81 

Tenure  of  Office ■. Charles  W.  Eliot 82 

Moral  Principles Erasmus 83 

Normal  Schools  a  Success Richard  Edwards ?iT^ 

No  Dark  Continents John  Eaton 84 

Individual  Possibility  and  Human  Aid.  .Edward  Everett 85 

Educated  Public  Opinion George  F.  Edmunds %'j 

Cultivated  Manners Ralph  Waldo  Emerson 87 

The  Greek  Language C.  C.  Felton 88 

Read  the  Originals Benjamin  Franklin 89 

Will  it  Pay  ? Alice  E.  Freeman 90 

Neglecting  the  Mind Michael  Faraday 91 

Geography,  Physical  and  Political J.  G.  Fitch 92 

Open  Eyes J-  A.  Froude 93 

The  Teacher's  Monument Thomas  Fuller 94 

Facts  and  Principles J-  A.  Froude 94 

The  Life  Sciences Michael  Faraday 95 

Cultivate  the  Fancy Thomas  Fuller 96 

Mathematical  Sciences J.  G.  Fitch 97 

Unity  in  Variety Froebel 99 

Dangerous  Ambition Guizot 100 

Reverence  for  Boys James  A.  Garfield. 100 

Baby  Scientists. John  M.  Gregory loi 

English  Literature J-  H.  Gilmore 102 

The  Study  of  Psychology Daniel  C.  Gilman 103 

The  Teacher  a  Student Daniel  C.  Gihnan 104 

Time-servers Joseph  John  Gurney 105 

Moral  Enthusiasm D.  S.  Gregory 105 

A  Plea  for  the  Classics Arnold  Green 106 

Education  Life-long T.  S.  Grimke 108 

A  Neglected  Study Asa  Gray 109 

Educated  Women  a  Necessity Parke  Godwin no 


3  CONTENTS. 

VKGB. 

The  Fascination  of  Greek Merrill  Edwards  Gates ....  in 

Early  Impressions Goethe 112 

Knowledge  and  Discipline Daniel  B.  Hagar 113 

Machine  Teachers  and  Methods John  Hancock 113 

Philosophical  Teaching B.  A.  Hinsdale 114 

Self-educated  Men Mark  Hopkins 115 

A  Draught  of  Nectar J-  C.  Hare 116 

The  Finest  of  the  Fine  Arts Frederic  D.  Huntington. . .  116 

A  Liberal  Education Thomas  H.  Huxley 119 

Reconstructive  Power E.  O.  Haven 119 

Study  of  Principles J.  W.  Hales 121 

Intellectual  Living Philip  Gilbert  Hamerton ...  1 22 

The  Classics  a  Delight   Thos.  Wentworth  Higginson  123 

How  I  was  Educated Edward  Everett  Hale 125 

A  Lofty  Aim Julia  Ward  Hoive 126 

The  Educator's  Responsibility George  S.  Hillard 127 

We  Work  for  Culture Philip  Gilbert  Hamerton ...  127 

Physical  Science Thomas  H.  Huxley 129 

On  Reading  Wisely Frederick  Harrison 130 

The  School  in  History William  T.  Harris 131 

Trained  Teachers Thomas  Hunter 133 

Christianity  and  the  Public  Schools Archibald  Alexander  Hodge  134 

The  Man,  not  the  Mind Frederic  D.  Huntington ...  135 

English  Letters T.  W.  Hunt 136 

True  Intellectual  Growth Henry  N.  Hudson 137 

The  Study  of  Geometry Thomas  Hill 138 

Vocal  Music  in  Public  Schools H.  E.  Holt 139 

Scientific  Ruts August  Wilhelm  Hof7}iann. .  140 

Education  a  Birthright Edward  S.  Joynes 141 

Mind,  not  Matter Samuel  Johnson 142 

Worshipping  Self-Made  Men L.  R.  Klemm 143 

Systematic  Arrangement David  Kay 144 

Submission  to  Authority David  Kay 145 

Then  He  is  Educated Joseph  Landon 146 

Men  Grown,  not  Manufactured S.  S.  Laurie 147 

The  Touchstone  of  Reason John  Locke 148 

Neglect  of  Accomplishments Mary  Lyon 149 

Girls  and  Questions  of  the  Day Mary  A.  Livermore 149 

The  Office  of  Letters Joseph  Lakanal 150 

Education  desires  the  Best La  Cholotais 150 


CONTENTS.  '  g 

PAGE 

Education  a  Perpetual  Process y^o^n  Lalor 150 

All-around  Education James  Russell  Lowell 152 

Meditation  and  Discourse yohn  Locke 153 

Knowledge  of  the  Scriptures Tayler  Lewis , 154 

The  Classics  and  Discipline J-  L.  Lincoln /'54 

Culture  of  the  Will S.  S.  Laurie 156 

Not  Rules,  but  Character John  Morley 157 

The  Great  Regenerator J-  D.  Morell 157 

Shameful  Inefficiency John  Stuart  Mill 157 

The  Corner-stone John  Stuart  Mill 159 

Inspiration  of  Curiosity Hugh  Miller 159 

The  Shell  and  the  Kernel Thos.  Babington  Macaulay,  160 

Conversation  and  Travel Michel  Montaigne. 161 

A  Third  Kind  of  Knowledge John  Morley 161 

The  Highest  Perfection John  Milton 162 

Grammatical  Studies C.  Marcel 163 

Applied  Thought John  Stuart  Mill 164 

Never  Ending David  Masson 164 

Physical  Culture T.  T.  Munger 165 

High  Ideals James  McCosh 167 

Wanted :  Well-balanced  Minds Williajn  A.  Mowry 168 

Concentration  of  Purpose William  Mathews 169 

Overworked  Teachers A/aria  Mitchell 1 70 

Industrial  Schools  Needed Arthur  Mc  Arthur 171 

Presumption  of  Brains A.  P.  Marble 172 

Which,  a  Farce  or  a  Tragedy? James  Madison 173 

The  Pilgrims  and  Education Horace  Mann 173 

Mother  Ideas T'homas  J.  Morgan 1 74 

Conversation  a  Fine  Art B.  G.  Northrup 1 76 

Twilight  Regions Nicole 177 

History  and  Practical  Knowledge Niemeyer 177 

Training  of  the  Eye Hiram   Orcutt 1 78 

The  Sciences  closely  Related Denison  Olmstead 1 79 

Cramming Joseph  Payne 180 

Too  Difficult Noah  Porter 180 

Action  the  Highest  End F.  B.  Palmer 182 

A  Plea  for  Electives G.  H.  Palmer 183 

Electives  and  Natural  Deficiency A.  P.  Peabody 185 

Kindle  your  Own  Fire Plutarch 186 

Exceptions  to  the  Rule Theodore  Parker 187 


lO  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Interest  Indispensable Pestalozzi 187 

A  Happy  School Pestalozzi 189 

A  Work  for  Eternity John  D.  Philhrick 189 

Value  of  Educational  History William  H.  Payne 190 

Early  linguistic  Training Noah  Porter 190 

The  Study  of  Physiology James  Paget 191 

Reading  and  Re-reading E.  T.  Palgrave 192 

The  Head  and  the  Hand Williaffi  H.  Payne 193 

We  Learn  to  do  by  Doing Francis  W.   Parker 194 

Experiment  and  Transition F.  V.  N.  Painter 195 

Freedom,  not  Force Plato 196 

The  Teaching  of  the  Jesuits Robert  Herbert  Quick 197 

Ratich  and  Ascham  Compared Robert  Herbert  Quick 197 

Philip's  Teacher Quintilian 198 

Enriching  the  Mind Sir  Joshua  Reynolds 199 

Things,  not  Words J.  J.  Rousseau 20I 

Man  and  Nature Franfois  Rabelais 201 

A  Hard  Mode  of  Thought E.  du  Bois-Reymond 202 

Learning  with  Effort J.  J.  Rousseau 202 

Talent  and  Genius Johann  K.  F.  Rosenkranz . .  203 

On  Teaching  Mathematics Otis  H.  Robinson 204 

A  Desirable  Faculty John  Ruskin 205 

A  Great  Need £.  G.  Robinson 206 

The  Art  of  Reading Charles  F.  Richardson 208 

Heart  Education John  Ruskin 210 

Not  a  Slave  to  Maxims Frederick  W.  Robertson ....  210 

A  Warning Lord  Shaftesbury 211 

An  Unsolved  Problem E.  P.  Seaver 211 

The  Teacher  of  the  Future Barnas  Sears 212 

Educational  Systems  a  Grov^'th John  Swett 213 

'Life  Education Samuel  Smiles 214 

The  Home  or  the  Nation Samuel  Smiles 215 

Important  Knovi^ledge  and  Belles-lettres . .  Herbert  Spencer 215 

An  Element  of  Power William  E.  Sheldon 216 

^Esthetic  Training James  Sully » 217 

School  Knowledge  and  Daily  Life Edith  Sim  cox 218 

Wisdom  and  Knowledge Robert  Southey 219 

The  Head  and  the  Heart J.  C.  F.  Schiller 220 

Subsidizing  all  Sources Thomas  B.  Stockwell 220 

What  Knowledge  is  of  Most  Worth? Herbert  Spencer 222 


CONTENTS,  1 1 

PAGE 

The  Gifts  of  a  Liberal  Education E.  R.  Sill 223 

Intellectual  and  Moral  Culture Jajnes  Sully 224 

Natural  Order  of  Development Arthur  Schopenhauer 225 

A  Strong  Head  and  a  Sound  Heart William  G.  T.  Shedd 226 

Many  in  One Sir  Jatnes  Stephen 227 

Accuracy Lord  Stanley 227 

In  Exile Seneca 228 

In  a  Fog , Arthur  Schopenhauer 228 

Youthful  Discoverers Herbert  Spencer 229 

Education  for  Citizenship Homer  B.  Sprague 230 

The  Science  of  Government Joseph  Story 232 

A  Conversation  Class Kate  Sanborn 233 

Contentment  at  Home Seneca 234 

An  Ideal  School y.  Dorman  Steele 234 

A  Strong  Protest George  Sand 234 

The  Objective  Order Antonio  Rosmini  Serbati. . .  236 

Religion  the  Source  of  Learning Julius  H.  Seelye 237 

The  Teachings  of  Experience Frederick    Temple 238 

The  World  still  Young John  Tyndall 240 

A  Bit  of  Advice William  M.  Thackeray 242 

The  Teacher's  Responsibility T.  Tate 242 

How  to  succeed Archbishop  Tillotson 243 

The  Socratic  Method William  S.  Tyler 243 

The  Duty  of  Scholarship John   I'etlow 245 

A  Mature  Mind Isaac   Taylor 245 

Training  the  Object  of  Education Edward  Thring 246 

A  Misfortune /.    Todhunter 246 

Equal  Education  for  Men  and  Women.  .H.  S.  Tarbell 247 

Early  Instruction  in  Music Eben  Tourjee 248 

Physics  and  Culture John    Tyndall 249 

Habits  in  the  Gristle William  M.  Taylor 250 

Clear  Thought,  Correct  Judgment Frederick   Temple 252 

Educating  Conditions J-  H.  Vincent 252 

How  to  teach  Morality Talleyrand 253 

Religious  Instruction Von  Gentz 253 

Moody,  and  not  IngersoU A.  E.    Winship ,  254 

Intellectual  Development .  .Francis  Way  land 254 

Why  not  Both? William    Whewell 256 

Eyes  and  No  Eyes 7-  M.  Wilson 258 

Brains,  Sir E,  E.  White 259 


12 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

The  Qassics,  and  More  too William  C.  Wilkinson 260 

Mathematics  promotes  Civilization William    Whewell 261 

Trade  Schools Francis  A.  Walker 262 

Moral  Instruction Theodore  Dtvight  Woolsey. .  263 

Of  Reasoning Richard  Whately 264 

Of  Drawing Francis  Way  land 264 

Refined  Tastes Emma  Willard 265 

Higher  Education  of  Women Andrew  D.  White 266 

Original  Paintings Isaac  Watts 267 

Manual  Training-schools C.  M.   Woodward 267 

The  Temperance  Reform  in  Schools Frances  E.  Willard 268 

Instructors  in  Justice Xenophon 269 

Talent  and  Virtue Edward  Young 270 


EDUCATIONAL   MOSAICS. 


'   or  THE 

'TJ5IVEKSIT7J 
EDUCATIONAL   MOSAICS. 


>>»<c 


It  is  a  shame  not  to  have  been  educated ;  for  he  who 
has  received  an  education  differs  from  him  who  has  not, 
as  the  living  does  from  the  dead. 

Aristotle. 


It  is  clear  that  in  whatever  it  is  our  duty  to  act, 
those  matters  also  it  is  our  duty  to  study. 

Thomas  Arnold. 


SPECIAL  APTITUDES. 

The  ideal  of  a  general,  liberal  training  is  to  carry  us 
to  a  knowledge  of  ourselves  and  the  world.  We  are 
called  to  this  knowledge  by  special  aptitudes  which  are 
born  with  us ;  the  grand  thing  in  teaching  is  to  have 
faith  that  some  aptitudes  for  this  every  one  has.  This 
one's  special  aptitudes  are  for  knowing  men  —  the  study 
of  the  humanities ;  that  one's  special  aptitudes  are  for 
knowing  the  world  —  the  study  of  nature.  The  circle 
of  knowledge  comprehends  both,  and  we  should  all  have 
some  notion,  at  any  rate,  of  the  whole  circle  of  knowl- 
edge. The  rejection  of  the  humanities  by  the  realists, 
the  rejection  of  the  study  of  nature  by  the  humanists, 
are  alike  ignorant.     He  whose  aptitudes  carry  him  to 


l6  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

the  study  of  nature  should  have  some  notion  of  the 
humanities ;  he  whose  aptitudes  carry  him  to  the  hu- 
manities should  have  some  notion  of  the  phenomena 
and  laws  of  nature.  Evidently,  therefore,  the  begin- 
nings of  a  liberal  culture  should  be  the  same  for  both. 
The  mother  tongue,  the  elements  of  Latin  and  of  the 
chief  modern  languages,  the  elements  of  history,  of 
arithmetic  and  geometry,  of  geography,  and  of  the 
knowledge  of  nature,  should  be  the  study  of  the  lower 
classes  in  all  secondary  schools,  and  should  be  the  same 
for  all  boys  at  this  stage.  So  far,  therefore,  there  is  no 
reason  for  a  division  of  schools.  But  then  comes  a 
bifurcation,  according  to  the  boy's  aptitudes  and  aims. 
Either  the  study  of  the  humanities  or  the  study  of 
nature  is  henceforth  to  be  the  predominating  part  of 
his  instruction. 

Matthew  Arnold. 


THE  LIVING  AND  NOT  THE  DEAD. 

Among  men  of  my  own  generation  I  do  both  admire 
and  envy  those  who  I  am  told  make  it  a  daily  rule  to 
read  a  little  of  Homer  or  Thucydides,  of  Horace  or 
Tacitus.  I  wish  I  could  do  the  same ;  and  yet  I  must 
frankly  say  I  should  not  do  it  if  I  could.  Life,  after  all, 
is  limited,  and  I  belong  enough  to  the  present  to  feel 
satisfied  that  I  could  employ  that  little  time  each  day 
both  more  enjoyably  and  more  profitably  if  I  should 
devote  it  to  keeping  pace  with  modern  thought,  as  it 
finds  expression  even  in  the  ephemeral  pages  of  the 
despised  review.  Do  what  he  will,  no  man  can  keep 
pace  with  that  wonderful  modern  thought ;   and  if   I 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  17 

must  choose,  —  and  choose  I  must,  —  I  would  rather 
learn  something  daily  from  the  living  who  are  to  perish, 
than  daily  muse  with  the  immortal  dead.  Yet  for  the 
purpose  of  my  argument  I  do  not  for  a  moment  dispute 
the  superiority — I  am  ready  to  say  the  hopeless,  the 
unattainable  superiority  —  of  the  classic  masterpieces. 
They  are  sealed  books  to  me,  as  they  are  to  at  least 
nineteen  out  of  twenty  of  the  graduates  of  our  colleges ; 
and  we  can  neither  affirm  nor  deny  that  in  them,  and  in 
them  alone,  are  to  be  found  the  choicest  thoughts  of  the 
human  mind  and  the  most  perfect  forms  of  human 
speech. 

Charles  Francis  Adams,  Jr. 


It  is  clearly  the  law  of  our  nature,  that  the  triumphs 
of  Intellect  are  to  be  gained  only  by  laborious  thought, 
and  by  the  gains  of  one  generation  being  made  the 
starting-point  for  the  acquisition  of  the  next. 

Duke  of  Argyll. 


LEGISLATORS  AND  EDUCATION. 

That  the  education  of  youth  ought  to  form  the  prin- 
cipal part  of  the  legislator's  attention,  cannot  be  a  doubt, 
since  education  first  moulds,  and  afterwards  sustains  the 
various  modes  of  government.  The  better  and  more 
perfect  the  systems  of  education,  the  better  and  more 
perfect  the  plan  of  government  it  is  intended  to  intro- 
duce and  uphold.  In  this  important  object,  fellow-citi- 
zens are  all  equally  and  deeply  concerned ;  and  as  they 
are  all  united  in  one  common  work  for   one   common 


1 8  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

purpose,  their  education  ought  to  be  regulated  by  the 
general  consent,  and  not  abandoned  to  the  blind  decision 
of  chance  or  to  idle  caprice. 

Aristotle. 


INSPIRATION  BETTER  THAN  INSTRUCTION. 

The  teacher  of  the  future  must  have  a  comprehensive 
,  idea  of  the  condition  of  modern  thought  in  all  depart- 
ments and  the  power  and  learning  of  a  master  in  that 
which  he  assumes  to  teach.  He  must  be  able  to  go 
behind  all  text-books  and  manuals,  make  his  own  analy- 
sis of  his  subject,  and  be  capable  of  bringing  out  fresh 
and  original  conceptions  of  his  field  of  study.  The 
teacher  who  cons  over  a  set  of  passages  or  formulas  till 
he  gets  them  by  heart  and  then,  abandoning  vigorous 
investigation,  plods  on  in  the  same  tread-mill  round  for 
a  score  of  years,  is  guilty  of  obtaining  his  salary  by 
false  pretences..  He  only  can  teach  who  looks  down 
upon  the  elements  of  his  department,  from  the  heights 
of  broad  and  solid  attainment.  Moreover,  whatever  his 
knowledge  may  be,  he  cannot  teach  with  vigor  after  he 
ceases  to  be  a  daily  learner.  He  must  keep  the  ma- 
chinery of  his  own  mind  hot  with  action,  if  he  would 
excite  activity  in  the  minds  of  his  students.  Example 
is  better  than  precept,  inspiration  is  better  than  instruc- 
tion. When  a  class  of  students  go  out  of  the  lecture 
room  red  in  the  face  and  wax  eloquent  over  the  subject- 
matter  of  their  studies,  and  delay  their  dinner  hour  in 
the  absorbing  heat  of  their  intellectual  combat,  the 
teacher's  work  is  more  than  half  accomplished.  Like 
all  human  institutions,  the  success  of  the  college  of  the 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  19 

future,  in  the  best  sense  of  the  term,  must  be  a  question 
of  men.  That  education  is  the  best,  as  a  general  rule, 
which  brings  the  student  into  face-to-face  contact  and 
relation  with  the  greatest  number  of  magnetic,  control- 
ling, and  formative  minds.  It  is  not  enough  that  a 
teacher  be  learned ;  he  must  be  earnest,  must  love  his 
work,  and  love  young  men ;  he  must  enter  into  an  un- 
feigned sympathy  with  them  in  all  their  mental  and 
moral  life ;  he  must  pour  out  upon  them  the  results  of 
his  reading,  his  thought,  and  experience,  with  unsparing 
prodigality,  forgetful  of  himself  and  his  own  reputation ; 
even  willing,  like  a  true  mother,  to  give  up  his  own 
mental  being  if  he  can  only  see  the  life  of  other  souls 
springing  into  power  under  his  hand. 

Martin  B.  Anderson. 


Education  and  instruction  are,  according  to  the  use 
of  language,  two  different  things ;  the  former  including 
the  whole  of  physical,  moral,  and  intellectual  develop- 
ment, but  the  latter  applicable  more  properly  to  the 
training  of  the  intellect. 


Aretinus. 


OF  TEACHING   HISTORY. 

The  main  difficulty  with  existing  methods  of  teach- 
ing history  seems  to  be  that  the  subject  is  treated  as  a 
record  of  dead  facts,  and  not  as  a  living  science.  Pupils 
fail  to  realize  the  vital  connection  between  the  past  and 
the  present ;  they  do  not  understand  that  ancient  his- 
tory was   the  dawn  of   a  light  which  is  still   shining 


20  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

on ;  they  do  not  grasp  the  essential  idea  of  history, 
which  is  the  growing  self-knowledge  of  a  living,  pro- 
gressive age.  Etymologically  and  practically,  the  study 
of  history  is  simply  a  learning  by  inquiry.  According 
to  Professor  Droysen,  who  is  one  of  the  most  eminent 
historians  in  Berlin,  the  historical  method  is  merely  to 
understand  by  means  of  research.  Now  it  seems  en- 
tirely practicable  for  every^teacher  and  student  of  his- 
tory to  promote,  in  a  limited  way,  the  "know  thyself" 
of  the  nineteenth  century  by  original  investigation  of 
things  not  yet  fully  known,  and  by  communicating  to 
others  the  results  of  his  individual  study.  The  pursuit 
of  history  may  thus  become  an  active  instead  of  a  pas- 
sive process ;  an  increasing  joy  instead  of  a  depressing 
burden.  Students  will  thus  learn  that  history  is  not 
entirely  bound  up  in  text-books ;  that  it  does  not  con- 
sist altogether  in  what  this  or  that  learned  authority  has 
to  say  about  the  world.  What  the  world  believes  con- 
cerning itself,  after  all  that  men  have  written,  and  what 
the  student  thinks  of  the  world,  after  viewing  it  with 
the  aid  of  guide-books  and  with  his  own  eyes,  —  these 
are  matters  of  some  moment  in  the  developmental  proc- 
ess of  that  active  self-knowledge  and  philosophic  reflec- 
tion which  make  history  a  living  science  instead  of  a 
museum  of  facts  and  of  books  *'as  dry  as  dust."  Works 
of  history,  the  so-called  standard  authorities,  are  likely 
to  become  dead  specimens  of  humanity  unless  they  con- 
tinue in  some  way  to  quicken  the  living  age.  But 
written  history  seldom  fails  to  accomplish  this  end,  and 
even  antiquated  works  often  continue  their  influence  if 
viewed  as  progressive  phases  of  human  self-knowledge. 
Monuments  and  inscriptions  can  never  grow  old  so  long 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  21 

as  the  race  is  young.  New  meaning  is  put  into  ancient 
record ;  fresh  garlands  are  hung  upon  broken  statues ; 
new  temples  are  built  from  classic  materials,  and  the 
world  rejoices  at* its  constant  self-renewal. 

Herbert  B.  Adams. 


ATTAINABLE   ENDS. 

The  appropriate  and  attainable  ends  of  a  good  edu- 
cation are  the  possession  of  gentle  and  kindly  sympa- 
thies; the  sense  of  self-respect  and  of  the  respect  of 
fellowmen ;  the  free  exercise  of  the  intellectual  facul- 
ties ;  the  gratification  of  a  curiosity  that  "  grows  by 
what  it  feeds  on,"  and  yet  finds  food  forever;  the 
power  of  regulating  the  habits  and  the  business  of  life, 
so  as  to  extract  the  greatest  possible  portion  of  comfort 
out  of  small  means ;  the  refining  and  tranquillizing  en- 
joyment of"  the  beautiful  in  nature  and  art,  and  the 
kindred  perception  of  the  beauty  and  nobility  of  vir- 
tue ;  the  strengthening  consciousness  of  duty  fulfilled ; 
and,  to  crown  all,  "  the  peace  which  passeth  all  under- 
standing." 

Sarah  Austin. 


LINGUISTIC  STUDY  AND  REAL  KNOWLEDGE. 

The  ends  of  discipline  in  all  linguistic  study  must  be 
made  with  constant  additions  to  real  knowledge  in  the 
largest  sense  of  the  terms.  There  should  be  a  constant 
aim  in  the  study  of  Greek  and  Latin,  especially  to  intro- 
duce the  student  into  the  heart  of  ancient  life,  so  that 
its  inner  "form  and  pressure"  shall  be  so  stamped  upon 


22  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

the  pupil's  mind  that  all  ancient  art,  culture,  politics, 
and  civilization  shall  be  reproduced  by  the  means  of  the 
very  sentences  which  he  subjects  to  analysis  in  his  daily 
tasks.  Thucydides  and  Tacitus  should  be  not  only  text- 
books of  Greek  and  Latin,  but  of  history,  of  morals,  of 
political  economy,  and  philosophy  as  well.  Plato  and 
Aristotle  should  be  read  not  only  to  learn  Greek  syntax, 
but  for  instruction  in  all  the  best  thoughts  of  a  great 
era  in  the  world's  intellectual  life  —  as  a  necessary  prep- 
aration for  all  the  philosophical  questions  of  to-day. 
The  old  masters  of  literature  should  be  read  and  tried 
by  such  canons  of  criticism  as  we  apply  to  the  many- 
sided  and  thoughtful  productions  of  our  own  age.  In 
studying  ancient  authors,  in  reconciling  their  contradic- 
tory statements,  in  correcting  their  personal  and  class 
prejudices,  and  sifting  out  fact  from  legend,  and  patri- 
otic concealment  and  exaggeration  from  real  truth,  the 
learner  should  receive  a  training  in  weighing  evidence, 
testing  the  competency  of  witnesses,  and  handling  the 
laws  of  interpretation,  which  shall  prepare  him  for  all 
the  sternest  conflicts  of  business,  scholastic  or  political 
life.  I  have  spoken  of  our  tongue  as  a  part  of  a  college 
curriculum.  I  believe  that  its  origin  should  be  studied 
in  our  immediate  mother-tongues,  the  Anglo  Saxon  and 
Norman  French,  so  that  while  our  young  men  shall  be 
taught  all  the  elegance  of  expression  which  our  best 
writers  illustrate,  they  may  also  learn  to  have  faith  in 
the  picturesqueness  and  graphic  power  of  those  native 
and  homely  idioms  which  are  the  chosen  vehicle  of  all 
who  would  successfully  wield  the  minds  and  the  hearts 
of  the  rank  and  file  of  society. 

Maktin  B.  Anderson. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


23 


And  the  plea  that  this  or  that  man  has  no  time  for 
culture  will  vanish  as  soon  as  we  begin  to  examine  seri- 
ously our  present  use  of  our  time. 


Matthew  Arnold. 


STUDY  OF  POLITICAL  SCIENCE. 

Another  reason  for  the  study  of  Political  Science  in 
college  is,  that  thereby  is  laid  a  real  foundation  on  which 
to  build.  Knowledge  in  this  department  is  not,  indeed, 
like  mathematical  or  chemical  knowledge,  where  the 
student  must  begin  at  the  beginning,  but  even  this  to 
be  of  any  service  must  be  obtained  systematically.  All 
our  political  speeches,  and  a  large  part  of  the  newspaper 
articles,  assume  a  certain  degree  of  knowledge  on  the 
part  of  the  hearer  or  reader.  Without  this  previous 
knowledge  much  that  is  heard  and  read  is  not  fully  com- 
prehended. This  would  be  true  if  the  speakers  and 
writers  were  themselves  fully  masters  of  their  subject. 
But  in  too  many  cases  they  speak  and  write  of  that  of 
which  their  own  knowledge  is  quite  superficial.  We 
may  safely  say  that  to  a  large  extent  the  people  are  but 
little  the  wiser  for  the  political  matter  which  they  hear 
and  read.  But  with  a  definite  knowledge  of  the  leading 
features  of  our  system,  and  of  the  more  important  facts 
of  our  political  history,  there  would  be  constant  accu- 
mulations of  knowledge,  and  a  fair  understanding  of 
current  political  events. 

I.  W.  Andrews. 


OF   CO-EDUCATION. 

It   has   been   objected  —  and   the   objection,  if  well 
founded,  would,  to  my  mind,  be  a  most  serious  one  — 


24  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

that  women  cannot,  as  a  rule,  be  educated  in  the  class- 
rooms with  men  without  losing  that  womanly  delicacy 
which  forms  so  charming  a  grace  of  true  womanly  char- 
acter. Here,  it  seems  to  me,  a  priori  reasoning  is  of 
little  worth.  The  appeal  must  be  to  experience,  which 
has  been  large  enough  in  several  important  colleges  to 
determine  whether  the  objection  is  well  taken.  I  am 
prepared  to  say  that,  so  far  as  my  observation  has  ex- 
tended, either  in  studying  the  character  of  our  women 
graduates  or  of  those  of  other  colleges,  the  objection  has 
no  foundation  in  fact.  The  American  young  man,  how- 
ever rude  he  may  sometimes  be  with  those  of  his  own 
sex,  is  habitually  courteous  to  the  other  sex.  I  see  no 
reason  to  believe  that  the  conditions  of  life  in  a  well- 
ordered  college  where  both  sexes  are  instructed  are  any 
more  unfriendly  to  the  cultivation  or  preservation  of 
feminine  delicacy  and  sensibility  than  the  usual  condi- 
tions of  life  in  American  society  outside  of  the  college. 

Perhaps  the  most  serious  fear  cherished  concerning 
the  admission  of  women  to  colleges  with  men  was  that 
their  health  would  be  sacrificed.  I  confess  that  I  was 
formerly  not  without  solicitude  upon  this  point  myself. 
But  I  think  that  those  who  have  had  the  best  opportuni- 
ties for  observing  the  actual  effect  of  college  work  on 
young  women  share  my  conviction  that  the  solicitude 
we  felt  in  advance  has  not  been  justified.  We  believe 
that  if  a  young  woman  is  in  good  health  when  she  en- 
ters college,  has  fair  abilities,  will  use  common  prudence 
in  regulating  her  life,  will  not  attempt  to  give  too  much 
time  to  social  pleasures,  but  will  study  and  live  in  a  nat- 
ural, sensible  manner,  she  will  not  suffer  in  health,  but 
will  often  gain  in  strength,  by  the  regularity  and  stimu- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


25 


lation  of  her  college  duties.  At  any  rate,  there  are  no 
facts,  so  far  as  I  know,  which  indicate  that  the  strain 
upon  the  physical  strength  is  greater  in  the  life  of  the 
women  who  are  in  the  colleges  with  men  than  in  the 
separate  colleges  for  women.  The  figures  gathered  by 
the  Association  of  College  Alumnae  and  published  by 
the  Massachusetts  Labor  Bureau,  to  show  the  effects  of 
college  life  on  women,  seem  to  afford  no  ground  for  an 
unfavorable  judgment  on  the  colleges  in  which  the  sexes 
are  taught  together.  The  chief  objections  which  have 
been  raised  to  the  joint  education  of  the  sexes  seem, 
therefore,  to  have  but  little,  if  any,  weight.  Women  can 
be  hereafter,  as  they  have  been  now  for  years,  safely  and 
wisely  educated  in  the  class-rooms  with  men. 

James  B.  Angell. 


TALKING  AND   LEARNING. 

All  quick  inventors  and  ready,  fair  speakers  must  be 
careful  that  to  their  goodness  of  nature  they  add  also  in 
any  wise  study,  labor,  leisure,  learning,  and  judgment, 
and  then  they  shall  indeed  pass  all  other  (as  I  know 
some  do  in  whom  all  those  qualities  are  fully  planted), 
or  else  if  they  give  over-much  to  their  wit,  and  over-little 
to  their  labor  and  learning,  they  will  soonest  over-reach 
in  talk,  and  farthest  come  behind  in  writing,  whatsoever 
they  take  in  hand. 

Roger  Ascham. 


THE  BEST  TALENT  FOR  SECONDARY  SCHOOLS. 

I  INSIST  that  the  interests  of  college  -and  of  high  cul- 
ture require  that  the  best  educational  talent  be  assigned 


26  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

to  the  academy.  If  you  must  have  a  poor  teacher,  put 
him  in  the  college,  instead  of  placing  him  at  the  head 
of  the  academy.  He  will  do  less  harm  in  the  college. 
I  may  be  allowed  to  suggest  that  in  every  institution 
the  best  teacher  should  take  the  lowest  class.  .  .  . 

The  true  teacher  teaches  himself;  that  is,  he  im- 
presses his  own  character,  his  own  intellectual  and  moral 
habits,  on  his  pupils.  Hence,  as  Milton  says  of  the  poet, 
*'  he  ought  to  be  a  pattern  of  the  best  and  honorablest 
things."  If  the  principal  of  the  academy  is  the  right 
kind  of  a  man,  he  can  do  more  for  his  pupil  than  the 
college  professor  can.  He  can  give  to  his  mind  a  direc- 
tion which  shall  continue  through  college  and  life. 

Joseph  Alden. 


It  is  only  the  superior  men  in  a  science,  or  in  an  art, 
those  who  have  sounded  all  its  depths,  and  have  carried 
it  to  its  farthest  limits,  who  are  capable  of  composing 
such  elementary  treatises  as  are  desirable. 


Arbogast. 


FETICH-WORSHIP. 


For  myself,  I  cannot  but  think  that  the  species  of 
sanctity  which  has  now,  ever  since  the  revival  of  learn- 
ing, hedged  the  classics,  is  destined  soon  to  disappear. 
Yet  it  is  still  strong ;  indeed,  it  is  about  the  only  patent 
of  nobility  which  has  survived  the  levelling  tendencies 
of  the  age.  A  man  who  at  some  period  of  his  life  has 
studied  Latin  and  Greek  is  an  educated  man ;  he  who 
has  not  done  so  is  only  a  self-taught  man.  Not  to  have 
studied  Latin,  irrespective  of  any  present  ability  to  read 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  27 

it,  is  accounted  a  thing  to  be  ashamed  of ;  to  be  unable 
to  speak  French  is  merely  an  inconvenience.  I  submit 
that  it  is  high  time  that  this  superstition  should  come 
to  an  end.  I  do  not  profess  to  speak  with  authority, 
but  I  have  certainly  mixed  somewhat  with  the  world, 
its  labors  and  its  literatures,  in  several  countries,  through 
a  third  of  a  century ;  and  I  am  free  to  say,  that  whether 
viewed  as  a  thing  of  use,  as  an  accomplishment,  as  a 
source  of  pleasure,  or  as  a  mental  training,  I  would 
rather  myself  be  familiar  with  the  German  tongue  and 
its  literature  than  be  equally  familiar  with  the  Greek. 
I  would  unhesitatingly  make  the  same  choice  for  my 
child.  What  I  have  said  of  German  as  compared  with 
Greek,  I  will  also  say  of  French  as  compared  with 
Latin.  On  this  last  point  I  have  no  question.  Authority 
and  superstition  apart,  I  am  indeed  unable  to  see  how 
an  intelligent  man,  having  any  considerable  acquaint- 
ance with  the  two  literatures,  can,  as  respects  either 
richness  or  beauty,  compare  the  Latin  with  the  French ; 
while  as  a  worldly  accomplishment,  were  it  not  for 
fetich-worship,  in  these  days  of  universal  travel  the  man 
would  be  properly  regarded  as  out  of  his  mind  who 
preferred  to  be  able  to  read  the  odes  of  Horace,  rather 
than  to  feel  at  home  in  the  accepted  neutral  language 
of  all  refined  society.  This  view  of  the  case  is  not  yet 
taken  by  the  colleges. 

"  The  slaves  of  custom  and  established  mode, 
With  pack-horse  constancy  we  keep  the  road, 
Crooked  or  straight,  through  quags  or  thorny  dells, 
True  to  the  jingling  of  our  leader's  bells." 

And  yet  I  am  practical  and  of  this  world  enough  to 
believe  that  in  a  utilitarian  and  scientific  age  the  living 


28  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

will  not  forever  be  sacrificed  to  the  dead.  The  worship 
even  of  the  classical  fetich  draweth  to  a  close ;  and  I 
shall  hold  that  I  was  not  myself  sacrificed  wholly  in 
vain,  if  what  I  have  said  here  may  contribute  to  so  shap- 
ing the  policy  of  Harvard  that  it  will  not  much  longer 
use  its  prodigious  influence  towards  indirectly  closing 
for  its  students,  as  it  closed  for  me,  the  avenues  to  mod- 
ern life  and  the  fountains  of  living  thought. 

Charles  Francis  Adams,  Jr. 


THE   INSTINCT   FOR   BEAUTY. 

I  CANNOT  really  think  that  humane  letters  are  in  danger 
of  being  thrust  out  from  their  leading  place  in  education, 
in  spite  of  the  array  of  authorities  against  them  at  this 
moment.  So  long  as  human  nature  is  what  it  is,  their 
attractions  will  remain  irresistible.  They  will  be  studied 
more  rationally,  but  they  will  not  lose  their  place.  What 
will  happen  will  rather  be  that  there  will  be  crowded 
into  education  other  matters  besides,  far  too  many. 
There  will  be,  perhaps,  a  period  of  unsettlement  and 
confusion  and  false  tendency  ;  but  letters  will  not  in  the 
end  lose  their  leading  place.  If  they  lose  it  for  a  time, 
they  will  get  it  back  again.  We  shall  be  brought  back 
to  them  by  our  wants  and  aspirations.  And  a  poor 
humanist  may  possess  his  soul  in  patience,  neither  strive 
nor  cry,  admit  the  energy  and  brilliancy  of  the  partisans 
of  physical  science,  and  their  present  favor  with  the 
public,  to  be  far  greater  than  his  own,  and  still  have  a 
happy  faith  that  the  nature  of  things  works  silently  on 
behalf  of  the  studies  which  he  loves,  and  that,  while  we 
shall  all  have  to  acquaint  ourselves  with  the  great  re- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


29 


suits  reached  by  modern  science,  and  to  give  ourselves 
as  much  training  in  its  disciplines  as  we  can  conveniently 
carry,  yet  the  majority  of  men  will  always  require  humane 
letters,  and  so  much  the  more  as  they  have  the  more  and 
the  greater  results  of  science  to  relate  to  the  need  in 
man  for  conduct,  and  to  the  need  in  him  for  beauty.  .  .  . 
The  instinct  for  beauty  is  set  in  human  nature,  as 
surely  as  the  instinct  for  knowledge  is  set  there,  or  the 
instinct  for  conduct.  If  the  instinct  for  beauty  is  served 
by  Greek  literature  as  it  is  served  by  no  other  literature, 
we  may  trust  to  the  instinct  of  self-preservation  in  hu- 
manity for  keeping  Greek  as  part  of  our  culture.  We 
may  trust  to  it  for  even  making  this  study  more  preva- 
lent than  it  is  now.  As  I  said  of  humane  letters  in  gen- 
eral, Greek  will  come  to  be  studied  more  rationally  than  at 
present ;  but  it  will  be  increasingly  studied  as  men  in- 
creasingly feel  the  need  in  them  tor  beauty,  and  how 
powerfully  Greek  art  and  Greek  literature  can  serve  this 
need. 

Matthew  Arnold. 


SEVERE   STUDY. 


An  effective  way  to  excite  interest,  and  that  of  the 
right  kind,  in  school,  is  not  to  remove  difficulties,  but  to 
teach  the  pupils  how  to  surmount  them.  A  text-book 
so  contrived  as  to  make  study  mere  play,  and  to  dis- 
pense with  thought  and  effort,  is  the  worst  text-book 
that  can  be  made,  and  the  surest  to  be,  in  the  end,  a 
dull  one.  The  great  source  of  literary  enjoyment,  which 
is  the  successful  exercise  of  intellectual  power,  is,  by 
such  a  mode  of  presenting  a  subject,  cut  off.  Secure, 
therefore,  severe  study.     Let  the  pupil  see  that  you  are 


30 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


aiming  to  secure  it,  and  that  the  pleasure  that  you 
expect  that  they  will  receive  is  that  of  firmly  and  pa- 
tiently encountering  and  overcoming  difficulty ;  of  pen- 
etrating, by  steady  and  persevering  effort,  into  regions 
from  which  the  idle  and  the  inefficient  are  debarred ; 
and  that  it  is  your  province  to  lead  them  forward,  and 
not  to  carry  them.  They  will  soon  understand  this  and 
like  it. 

Jacob  Abbott. 


TWO  ASPECTS   OF   INDUSTRIAL  EDUCATION. 

The  phrase  "industrial  education  "  may  have,  and  has 
acquired,  two  entirely  distinct  meanings.  As  under- 
stood by  one  party,  it  means  the  kind  of  education  that 
is  intended  to  foster  industrial  skill  and  to  fit  the  pupil, 
while  at  school,  foi^the  industrial  pursuits  of  later  life. 
.  ,  .  But  there  is  a  totally  different  sense  in  which  the 
phrase  "  industrial  education  "  may  be  understood  ;  not 
that  education  shall  be  made  subservient  to  industrial 
success,  but  that  the  acquisition  of  industrial  skill  shall 
be  a  means  for  promoting  the  general  education  of  the 
pupil  ;  that  the  education  of  the  hand  shall  be  a  means 
of  more  completely  and  more  efficaciously  educating  the 
brain.  It  is  in  the  latter  sense,  in  which  labor  is  re- 
garded as  a  means  of  mental  development,  that  indus- 
trial education  is  understood  by  the  most  enlightened  of 
its  advocates.  They  are  well  aware  that  to  introduce  a 
trade  into  the  school  is  to  degrade  the  school ;  that  to 
take  away  from  the  young  the  time  that  should  be  dedi- 
cated to  the  elements  of  general  culture  and  devote  it 
to  training  them  in  a  special  aptitude,  however  useful 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  31 

later  on,  is  to  impair  the  humanity  of  the  children. 
They  desire  nothing  of  this  sort,  arid  they  ask  that  a 
workshop  be  connected  with  every  school,  for  no  other 
reason  than  that  a  chemical  laboratory  is  connected  with 
every  college. ^^^^^  ^^^^^^ 

PUBLIC   VERSUS   PRIVATE   EDUCATION. 

Experience  seems  to  point  out  no  one  plan  of  edu- 
cation as  decidedly  the  best ;  it  only  says,  I  think,  that 
public  education  is  the  best  where  it  answers.  But  then 
the  question  is.  Will  it  answer  with  one's  own  boy  ?  and 
if  it  fails,  is  not  the  failure  complete  .-*  It  becomes  a 
question  of-  particulars  :  a  very  good  private  tutor  would 
tempt  me  to  try  private  education,  or  a  very  good  public 
school,  with  connections  amongst  the  boys  at  it,  might 
induce  me  to  enter  upon  public.  Still  there  is  much 
chance  in  the  matter ;  for  a  school  may  change  its  char- 
acter greatly,  even  with  the  same  master,  by  the  preva- 
lence of  a  good  or  bad  set  of  boys  ;  and  this  no  caution 
can  guard  against.  But  I  should  advise  anything  rather 
than  a  private  school  of  above  thirty  boys.  Large  pri- 
vate schools,  I  think,  are  the  worst  possible  system ;  the 
choice  lies  between  public  schools  and  an  education 
whose  character  may  be  strictly  private  and  domestic. 

Thomas  Arnold. 


Whoever  wishes  to  study  with  success,  must  exercise 
himself  in  these  three  things  :  in  getting  clear  views  of 
a  subject ;  in  fixing  in  his  memory  what  he  has  under- 
stood ;  and  in  producing  something  from  his  own 
resources.  a^,,,^^. 


32 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 


The  informed  man  in  the  world  may  be  said  to  be 
always  surrounded  by  what  is  known  and  friendly  to 
him,  while  the  ignorant  man  is  as  one  in  a  land  of 
strangers  and  enemies. 


Neil  Arnott. 


A   SUCCESS. 

The  negro  has  falsified  the  predictions  of  his  enemies, 
and  dispelled  the  fears  of  his  friends.  They  said  he 
would  give  himself  to  riot  and  plunder ;  but  he  earned 
the  gratitude  of  the  South  by  his  fidelity  to  the  family 
and  the  plantation,  while  his  master  was  fighting  against 
his  freedom.  They  said  the  freedman  would  not  work, 
but  he  raised  in  one  year  nearly  four  million  bales  of 
cotton.  They  ridiculed  '*  Sambo  "  in  uniform,  but  the 
steady  lines  at  Petersburg  and  the  charge  at  Fort  Wag- 
ner attest  his  heroism. 

What  grander  enterprise  could  there  be  than  to  take 
up  the  cause  of  a  race  like  this,  —  the  pariahs  of  the 
peoples,  —  distrusting  their  old  guides  and  suspecting 
their  present  leaders,  and  prepare  for  them  with  timely 
zeal,  and  by  wise  methods,  an  army  of  educators  who 
shall  give  tone  to  their  character,  direction  to  their 
ideas,  and  by  moulding  the  now  plastic  material,  secure 
a  well-laid  foundation,  upon  which  the  workmen  of  the 
future  shall  build  to  the  honor  of  the  race  and  of  the 
nation,  and  to  the  glory  of  God } 

S.  C.  Armstrong. 


NEWS-ROOMS  AND   LIBRARIES. 

If  you  wish  to  be  living  always  in  the  present,  if  you 
wish  to  have  the  din  of  its  contentions  always  in  your 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  33 

ears,  and  the  flush  of  its  fleeting  interests  always  on 
your  brow,  above  all,  if  you  wish  to  have  your  opinions 
ready-made  for  you,  without  the  trouble  of  inquiry,  and 
without  the  discipline  of  thought,  then,  I  say,  come 
from  your  counting-house  and  spend  the  few  hours  of 
leisure  which  you  may  have  in  exhausting  the  columns 
of  the  daily  press ;  but  if  your  ambition  be  a  nobler 
one,  if  your  aim  be  higher,  you  will  find  yourselves 
often  passing  from  the  door  of  the  news-room  into  that 
of  the  library,  —  from  the  present  to  the  past,  from  the 
living  to  the  dead,  —  to  commune  with  those  thoughts 
which  should  have  stood  the  test  of  time,  and  which 
have  been  raised  to  the  shelves  of  the  library  by  com- 
mon consent  of  all  men,  because  they  do  not  contain 
mere  floating  information,  but  instruction  for  all  gen- 
erations and  for  all  times. 

Duke  of  Argyll. 


POLISHED  MARBLE. 

I  CONSIDER  a  human  soul  without  education  like 
marble  in  a  quarry,  which  shows  none  of  its  inherent 
beauties  until  the  skill  of  the  polisher  fetches  out  the 
colors,  makes  the  surface  shine,  and  discovers  every 
ornamental  cloud,  spot,  and  vein  that  runs  throughout 
the  body  of  it.  Education,  after  the  same  manner, 
when  it  works  upon  a  noble  mind,  draws  out  to  view 
every  latent  virtue  and  perfection,  which,  without  such 
helps,  are  never  able  to  make  their  appearance. 

Joseph  Addison. 


Always  trust,  therefore,  for  the  overcoming  of  a 
difficulty,  not  to  long-continued  study  after  you  have 
once  got  bewildered,  but  to  repeated  trials,  at  intervals. 


Francis  Bacon. 


34  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

MUSIC  AND   THE   GREEKS. 

As  gymnastics  was  intended  to  harmonize  the  powers 
of  the  body,  so  music  was  to  order  and  to  regulate  the 
soul.  ...  A  Greek  who  could  not  distinguish  between 
semi-tones,  or  even  between  quarter-tones,  would  have 
been  thought  as  ignorant  as  a  classical  scholar  who 
quoted  Homer  with  a  false  quantity.  Also,  they  were 
far  more  sensitive  than  laymen  usually  are  among  our- 
selves to  the  essential  characteristics  of  different  keys. 
We  have  abundant  evidence  that  every  Greek  boy  was 
carefully  trained  in  the  theory  and  practice  of  the  musi- 
cal art,  and  that  it  was  regarded  by  masters  of  all 
schools  as  of  the  first  importance  to  intellect  and  mo- 
rality. Plato,  Aristotle,  and  Aristophanes  agree  in  this. 
Music  was  not  only  the  gymnastic  of  the  ear  and  the 
voice,  but  of  the  spirit,  and  the  foundation  of  all  the 
higher  life.  Its  rhythm  and  harmony  penetrated  into 
the  soul  and  worked  powerfully  upon  it.  In  union  with 
poetry  it  led  the  soul  to  virtue  and  inspired  it  with  cour- 
age. It  has  been  well  said  that  if  a  Greek  youth  had 
by  continuous  practice  become  stronger  than  a  bull, 
more  truthful  than  the  Godhead,  and  wiser  than  the 
most  learned  Egyptian  priest,  his  fellow-citizens  would 
shrug  their  shoulders  at  him  with  contempt  if  he  did 
not  possess  what  a  series  of  music  and  gymnastics  can 
alone  give,  —  a  sense  of  gracefulness  and  proportion. 

Oscar  Browning. 


FICTION  AND   EDUCATION. 

The  numerous  works  of  genius  that  take  the  form  of 
Fiction,  together  with  poetry  in  the  more  narrow  sense, 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


35 


are  undoubtedly  an  education  in  themselves.  The  force, 
elegance,  and  affluence  of  diction  in  general,  the  refine- 
ments and  delicacies  of  conversational  style  in  particu- 
lar, the  portraying  of  character,  and  the  depicting  of 
scenery  and  life,  the  wise  maxims  wittily  expressed, 
not  to  mention  the  inspiriting  ideals,  cannot  go  for 
nothing  on  the  mind  of  the  reader.  They  are  effica- 
cious, however,  just  in  proportion  to  previous  culture; 
with  a  vast  majority  of  fiction-readers  the  effect  is 
barely  to  be  traced ;  these  in  their  haste  extract  only 
the  plot,  sentiment,  and  passion,  and  let  all  the  rest 
escape  them.  To  gain  the  full  impression  of  a  work  of 
the  highest  genius  demands  slow  perusal,  and  a  con- 
siderable pause  before  entering  on  any  other. 

Alexander  Bain. 


CHAIRS   OF   DIDACTICS. 

The  establishment  in  the  great  institutions  of  Amer- 
ica and  Europe  of  a  chair  for  the  professional  education 
of  teachers,  marks  a  new  departure  in  education.  Col- 
leges and  universities  are  conservative  and  exclusive. 
The  professors  are  absorbed  in  their  subjects,  to  the 
exclusion  of  methods.  Thus  it  results  that,  as  to  meth- 
ods, our  public  schools  are  far  in  advance  of  our  col- 
leges. In  this  case  the  reform  must  come  from  within. 
The  maintenance  of  a  chair  of  didactics  is  destined  to 
revolutionize  college  methods.  Such  students  as  elect 
teaching  will  go  out  trained  for  their  work,  and  prepared 
to  fill  the  best  positions.  While  normal  departments 
have  necessarily  and  always  proved  failures,  the  plan 
now   pursued    in    the   universities   of   Michigan,  Iowa, 


36  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

Missouri,  and  other  states  promises  to  be  eminently 
successful.  Teaching  is  made  to  rank  with  theology, 
law,  and  medicine.  College  graduates  should  no  more 
undertake  to  teach  without  special  preparation,  than  to 
practise  law  or  medicine  without  special  preparation. 
Teaching  is  an  art  to  be  learned.  The  recognition  of 
these  facts  by  our  higher  institutions  marks  an  immense 
advance. 

J.  Baldwin. 

FOR  TWO  WORLDS. 

In  some  allotment  of  the  wide  domain  of  education, 
in  its  large  and  comprehensive  sense,  embracing  the 
culture  of  the  whole  being,  and  of  every  human  being 
for  two  worlds,  we  can  find  objects  and  room  enough  for 
any  sacrifice  of  time,  money,  and  labor  we  may  have 
to  bestow  in  its  behalf.  Ever  since  the  Great  Teacher 
condescended  to  dwell  among  men,  the  progress  of  this 
cause  has  been  upward  and  onward,  and  its  final  triumph 
has  been  longed  for  and  prayed  for,  and  believed  in  by 
every  lover  of  his  race.  And  although  there  is  much 
that  is  dark  and  despairing  in  the  past  and  present  con- 
dition of  society,  yet  when  we  study  the  nature  of 
education,  and  the  necessity  and  capabilities  of  improve- 
ment all  around  us,  with  the  sure  word  of  prophecy  in 
our  hands,  and  with  the  evidence  of  what  has  already 
been  accomplished,  the  future  rises  bright  and  glorious 
before  us,  and  on  its  forehead  is  the  morning  star,  the 
herald  of  a  better  day  than  has  yet  dawned  upon  our 
world.  In  this  sublime  possibility,  nay,  in  the  sure 
word  of  God,  let  us  in  our  hours  of  doubt  and  despon- 
dency, reassure  our  hope,  strengthen  our  faith,  and  con- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  37 

firm  the  unconquerable  will.  The  cause  of  education 
cannot  fail,  unless  all  the  laws  which  have  heretofore 
governed  the  progress  of  society  shall  cease  to  operate, 
and  Christianity  shall  prove  to  be  a  fable,  and  liberty  a 
dream. 

Henry  Barnard. 


PROPER  TEXT-BOOKS. 

Good  books  are  an  essential  aid  to  good  teaching. 
The  proper  kind  of  books  for  class  exercises  are  those 
which  contain  the  objects  of  study  without  the  author's 
explanation  of  the  thoughts  ;  such  as  books  of  carefully 
selected  sentences,  and  carefully  written  narratives  and 
descriptions,  to  be  used  with  the  objects  in  teaching 
beginners  to  read  ;  carefully  selected  and  carefully  writ- 
ten books  to  be  used  in  teaching  how  to  read  an  author ; 
books  of  problems  to  be  solved,  of  sentences  to  be 
translated  and  analyzed,  carefully  selected  and  graded ; 
books  of  topics  to  direct  the  learner  in  his  study  of 
objects  and  in  his  experiments ;  books  containing  his- 
torical documents  and  records  for  the  study  of  the  past ; 
and  choice  books  on  the  various  subjects  of  study,  in 
which  the  best  thoughts  of  the  writer  have  been  crys- 
tallized, showing  what  others  have  observed,  imagined, 
thought,  and  done,  which  are  to  be  read  for  the  thoughts 
of  the  writer. 

Albert  G.  Boyden. 


It  is  only  by  infusing  great  principles  into  the  com- 
mon mind  that  revolutions  in  human  society  are  brought 
about. 


George  Bancroft. 


38  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


SLOWLY  RIPENED   FRUIT. 


Where  a  permanent  reform  appears  to  have  been 
instantaneously  effected,  it  will  be  found  that  the  happy 
result  was  but  the  sudden  plucking  of  fruit  which  had 
slowly  ripened.  Successful  revolutions  proceed  like  all 
other  formative  processes  from  inward  germs.  The  in- 
stitutions of  a  people  are  always  the  reflection  of  its 
heart  and  its  intelligence ;  and  in  proportion  as  these 
are  purified  and  enlightened,  must  its  public  life  mani- 
fest the  dominion  of  universal  reason.  The  subtle  and 
irresistible  movement  of  mind,  silently  but  thoroughly 
correcting  opinion  and  changing  society,  brings  liberty 
both  to  the  soul  and  to  the  world.  All  the  despotisms 
on  earth  cannot  stay  its  coming.  Every  fallacy  that 
man  discards  is  an  emancipation ;  every  superstition 
that  is  thrown  by  is  a  redeeming  from  captivity. 

George  Bancroft. 


OF  PHILOSOPHY. 


If  philosophy  does  nothing  more  for  the  student  than 
to  teach  him  to  face  the  profound  questions  of  life  with 
composure,  patience,  and  respect,  believing  that  there 
is  an  infinite  choice  between  conclusions,  that  all  inquiry 
tends  to  the  light,  and  that  there  is  a  safe  path  toward 
that  light,  it  has  given  an  intellectual  and  moral  footing 
far  beyond  either  dogmatic  belief  or  despairing  unbelief. 
At  all  events,  he  will  escape  mistaking  flat  and  superfi- 
cial statements  for  complete  and  final  truths.  It  is 
worth  as  much  to  us  to  be  brought  face  to  face  with 
things  we  cannot  measure,  but  must  in  some  way  meet, 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  39 

as  to  be  taught  the  simplest  and  clearest  facts  in  knowl- 
edge. Conventional  minds  may  run  the  circuit  of  life 
under  conventional  morality,  regarded  as  a  sort  of  super- 
ficial deposit  in  race  development ;  yet  in  the  progress 
of  centuries  this  conventional  morality  will  show  itself 
amenable  to  the  silent  explorations  of  philosophy,  and 
to  those  patient  minds  that  are  busy  therein, 

John  Bascom. 


KNOWLEDGE   FOR  PAINS. 

The  knowledge  of  languages,  sciences,  histories,  etc., 
is  not  innate  to  us ;  it  does  not  of  itself  spring  in  our 
minds  ;  it  is  not  any  ways  incident  by  chance,  or  in- 
fused by  grace  (except  rarely  by  miracle) ;  common  ob- 
servation doth  not  produce  it ;  it  cannot  be  purchased 
at  any  rate,  except  by  that  for  which,  it  was  said  of  old, 
the  gods  sell  all  things,  that  is,  for  pains  ;  without  which 
the  best  wit  and  the  greatest  capacity  may  not  render  a 
man  learned,  as  the  best  soil  will  not  yield  good  fruit 
or  grain  if  they  be  not  planted  nor  sown  therein. 

Isaac  Barrow. 


INDIGESTIBLE   KNOWLEDGE. 

It  is  not  worth  while  to  discuss  whether  a  method 
ought  to  be  easy  or  hard.  But  we  should  even  go  on 
to  say  that  it  is  the  duty  of  a  teacher  not  to  rest  as  long 
as  any  difficulty  exists  which  by  any  change  of  method 
can  be  removed.  Involuntary  learning  is  of  as  little  use 
to  the  mind  as  involuntary  exercise  to  the  body. 

Now  it  is  certain  that  a  large  proportion  of  boys  dis- 
like the  work  which  they  have  to  .do.     Some  like  it; 

>^    OF  THR 
fTTTTTTrvr 


40 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


some  are  indifferent ;  a  great  many  simply  hate  it.  We 
maintain  that  an  educator  of  boys  has  no  business  to  be 
satisfied  as  long  as  this  is  the  case.  A  very  few  may 
dislike  all  intellectual  labor,  just  as  a  very  few  men  dis- 
like it ;  but  these  cases  are  as  rare  with  boys  as  with 
men.  The  great  mass  of  human  beings,  whether  young 
or  old,  have  appetites  for  mental  food  of  some  kind,  and 
the  reason  that  so  many  turn  away  from  it  is,  that  what 
is  given  them  is  not  what  they  can  digest.  There  is  a 
sort  of  incongruity,  which  falls  little  short  of  injustice, 
in  punishing  a  boy  for  being  idle,  when  we  know  that 
the  work  which  the  system  of  his  school  exacts  is  as 
cramping  and  distorting  to  his  mind  as  an  ill-fitting 
boot  to  the  foot.  No  one  would  claim  indeed  that  every 
pupil  shall  have  his  tastes  suited  with  minute  accuracy ; 
and  the  energy  of  a  boy,  if  he  is  in  good  health,  and 
otherwise  happy,  will  carry  him  through  minor  difficul- 
ties. But  no  young  boy  since  the  world  began  has  liked 
a  Latin  syntax,  or  a  ''formation  of  tenses,"  or  felt  any- 
thing in  them' for  his  mind  to  fasten  upon  and  care  for. 
Consider  the  case  of  a  stupid  boy,  or  an  unclassical  boy, 
at  school,  and  the  load  of  repulsive  labor  which  we  lay 
upon  him.  For  many  hours  every  day  we  expect  him 
to  devote  himself,  without  hope  of  distinction  or  reward, 
to  a  subject  which  he  dislikes  and  fears.  He  has  no  in- 
terest in  it ;  he  has  no  expectation  of  being  the  better  for 
it ;  he  never  does  well ;  he  rarely  escapes  doing  ill.  He 
is  sometimes  treated  with  strictness  for  faults  to  which 
the  successful  among  his  neighbors  have  no  temptation ; 
and,  when  he  is  not  visited  with  punishment,  he  at  least 
is  often  regarded  with  contempt.  He  may  be  full  of 
lively  sympathies,  eager  after  things  that  interest  him. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  41 

willing  even  to  sacrifice  something  for  the  sake  of  be- 
coming wiser ;  but  all  that  he  gets  in  the  way  of  intel- 
lectual education  is  a  closer  familiarity  with  a  jargon, 
the  existence  of  which  in  the  world  seems  to  him  to  con- 
trovert the  Argument  from  Design,  and  the  chance 
scraps  of  historical  and  literary  knowledge  which  fall 
from  the  lips  of  his  routine-bound  master.  If  only  it 
could  be  regarded  as  an  established  truth  that  the  office 
of  a  teacher  is,  more  than  anything  else,  to  educate  his 
pupils ;  to  cause  their  minds  to  grow  and  work,  rather 
than  simply  to  induce  them  to  receive ;  to  look  to  labor 
rather  than  to  weigh  specific  results ;  to  make  sure 
that  at  the  end  of  a  school-half  that  each  one  of  those 
entrusted  to  him  has  had  something  to  interest  him, 
quicken  him,  cause  him  to  believe  in  knowledge,  rather 
than  simply  to  repeat  certain  pages  of  a  book  without  a 
mistake, — then  we  might  begin  to  fancy  the  golden 
time  was  near  at  hand,  when  boys  will  come  up  to  their 
lessons,  as  they  surely  ought,  with  as  little  hesitation 
and  repugnance  as  that  with  which  a  man  sits  down  to 
his  work. 

E.  E.  BowEN. 


An  education  in  submission  is  as  essential  a  prepara- 
tion for  going  out  into  the  world,  as  an  education  in  a 
sound  bodily  regimen. 


Alexander  Bain. 


THE   KINDERGARTEN. 


The  movement  plays  and  exercises  of  the  child-gar- 
den supply  this  demand  for  the  education  of  free  activity 
of  the  body,  because  they  gratify  the  instinct  of  move- 


42 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


ment  by  a  rythmical  direction  of  it.  In  antiquity,  long 
prior  to  Greek  civilization,  men  practised  games  that 
developed  and  improved  the  body,  probably  without 
comprehending  their  full  import.  We  find  them  at  the 
present  day  among  most  savages.  The  sportive  con- 
tests of  antiquity,  certainly  those  of  the  Greeks ;  the 
tournaments  of  the  Middle  Ages  ;  above  all,  the  modern 
gymnasium,  has  given  to  this  primitive  instinct  of  motion 
a  particular  scope ;  and  it  has  become,  among  practical 
people,  a  reflective  act,  having  aim  and  object  beyond 
mere  bodily  development.  Doubtless  the  first  condition 
of  all  activity,  all  labor,  and  production  is  the  education 
of  the  limbs  and  the  organs,  which  are  the  instruments  of 
the  mind.  The  shortcoming  and  failure  of  this  educa- 
tion is  proved  by  the  feeble,  unformed,  and  crippled 
bodies  which  are  found  so  frequently  among  us,  insuffi- 
cient instruments  for  work.  Masses  of  men  have 
received  no  physical  education,  or  been  perverted  by 
that  which  they  have  received.  An  immense  amount 
of  force  is  lost  to  society  by  this  failure  of  bodies  at 
once  strong  and  healthy,  handsome  and  dexterous. 

Who  will  say  then,  that  the  movement  plays  of  the 
child-garden  are  not  a  serious  part  of  the  education  of 
the  human  being  1 

Baroness  Marenholtz  Bulow. 


CHILDREN  AND  NATURE. 

You  should  attend  to  nature  in  your  children  far  more 
than  to  art.  The  elegant  manners  and  usages  of  the 
world  are  for  the  most  part  unnatural.  These  come  of 
themselves  in  later  years.     Treat  children  like  children. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  43 

that  they  may  remain  the  longer  uncorrupted.  A  boy 
whose  acutest  faculties  are  his  senses,  and  who  has  no 
perception  of  anything  abstract,  must  first  of  all  be 
made  acquainted  with  the  world  as  it  presents  itself  to 
the  senses.  Let  this  be  shown  him  in  nature  itself,  or 
where  this  is  impossible,  in  faithful  drawings  or  models. 
Thereby  can  he,  even  in  play,  learn  how  the  various 
objects  are  to  be  named.  Comenius  alone  has  pointed 
the  right  road  in  this  matter.  By  all  means  reduce  the 
wretched  exercises  of  the  memory. 

J.  B.  Basedow. 


The  true  victories,  the  only  ones  which  we  need 
never  lament,  are  those  won  over  the  dominion  of  igno- 
rance. 

The  employment  most  honorable,  and  most  profitable 
to  the  people,  is  to  labor  for  the  diffusion  and  extension 
of  the  ideas  of  men. 

Napoleon  Bonaparte. 


THE  ENGLISH   LANGUAGE  AND   LITERATURE. 

If  the  extent  and  necessity  of  actual  use  be  taken  as 
a  measure  of  the  importance  of  any  study,  we  must 
agree  that  the  study  of  the  English  language  and  litera- 
ture easily  ranks  first  in  all  educational  work.  Expres- 
sion, both  oral  and  written,  forms  a  large  part  of  the 
daily  experience  of  every  human  being.  If  it  be  urged 
that  it  will  take  care  of  itself  from  imitation  of  others, 
it  may  be  answered  that  such  imitation  is  one  of  the 
very  things  that  most  hinder  the  use  of  good  language 
in  the  community,  and  that  the  same  reasoning  would 


44  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

apply  to  most  of  the  work  done  in  our  schools.  I  claim 
that  from  the  primary  school  to  the  close  of  the  college 
course,  the  study  of  the  English  language  and  its  litera- 
ture demands  at  least  as  much  time  and  attention  as 
that  of  any  other  subject  or  any  other  language  what- 
ever. ^ 

Eugene  Bouton. 


THE   DIGNITY   OF   HISTORY. 

It  is  because  God  is  visible  in  History  that  its  office 
is  the  noblest  except  that  of  the  poet.  The  poet  is  at 
once  the  interpreter  and  the  favorite  of  Heaven.  He 
catches  the  first  beam  of  light  that  flows  from  its  uncre- 
ated source.  He  repeats  the  message  of  the  Infinite, 
without  always  being  able  to  analyze  it,  and  often  with- 
out knowing  how  he  received  it,  or  why  he  was  selected 
for  its  utterance.  To  him,  and  to  him  alone,  history 
yields  in  dignity  ;  for  she  not  only  watches  the  great 
encounters  of  life,  but  recalls  what  has  vanished,  and 
partaking  of  a  bliss  like  that  of  creating,  restores  it  to 
animated  being.  The  mineralogist  takes  special  delight 
in  contemplating  the  process  of  crystallization,  as  though 
he  had  caught  nature  at  her  work  as  a  geometrician  ; 
giving  herself  up  to  be  gazed  at  without  concealment, 
such  as  she  appears  in  the  very  moment  of  exertion. 
But  history,  as  she  reclines  in  the  lap  of  eternity,  sees 
the  mind  of  humanity  itself  engaged  in  formative 
efforts,  constructing  sciences,  promulgating  laws,  organ- 
izing commonwealths,  and  displaying  its  energies  in  the 
visible  movement  of  its  intelligence.  Of  all  pursuits 
that  require  analysis,  history,  therefore,  stands  first.  It 
is  equal  to  philosophy ;  for  as  certainly  as  the  actual 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  45 

bodies  forth  the  ideal,  so  certainly  does  history  contain 
philosophy.  It  is  grander  than  the  natural  sciences ;  for 
its  study  is  man,  the  last  work  of  creation,  and  the  most 
perfect  in  its  relations  with  the  Infinite. 

George  Bancroft. 


SINGLE-STRINGED  METHODS. 
As  the  man  who  attempts  to  run  upon  one  leg  has 
poor  speed  and  quick  exhaustion,  so  do  all  the  single- 
stringed  methods  of  education  produce  exhaustion, 
fatigue,  and  failure.  But  when  the  soul  is  uplifted  and 
inspired  by  the  love  of  the  living  teacher  and  the  ravish- 
ing power  of  song,  and  when  these  exalted  sentiments 
are  consolidated  in  our  bone  and  muscle  by  industrial 
action  at  the  time,  we  develop  a  noble  and  enduring 
manhood  for  time  and  eternity.  It  is  the  only  manhood 
on  which  a  republican  government  can  stand,  and  this 
morally  industrial  education  is  the  only  possible  measure 
which  can  relieve  us  from  the  dangerous  classes  of  crimi- 
nals, from  the  threatening  army  of  tramps,  and  from 
the  convulsions,  mobs,  and  anarchy  which  are  coming 
upon  us,  when  millions  of  unskilled  and  poorly  educated 
workmen  living  near  the  precipice  of  famine  are  liable 
to  be  tumbled  over  its  edge  by  any  sudden  tilting  of  the 
balance  of  trade,  or  the  fluctuations  of  markets,  even  if 
the  curse  of  monopoly  and  speculation  were  removed. 

J.  R.  Buchanan. 

OF   LEARNING. 

It  were  too  long  to  go  over  the  particular  remedies 
which  learning  doth  minister  to  all  the  diseases  of  the 
mind,    sometimes   purging    the    ill-humors,   sometimes 


46  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

opening  the  obstructions,  sometimes  helping  the  di- 
gestion, sometimes  increasing  appetite,  sometimes  heal- 
ing the  wounds  and  exulcerations  thereof,  and  the  like ; 
and  therefore  I  will  conclude  with  the  chief  reason  of 
all,  which  is,  that  it  disposeth  the  constitution  of  the 
mind  not  to  be  fixed  or  settled  in  the  defects  thereof, 
but  still  to  be  capable  and  susceptible  of  reformation. 
For  the  unlearned  man  knows  not  what  it  is  to  descend 
into  himself,  or  to  call  himself  to  account ;  nor  the 
pleasure  of  that  most  pleasant  life,  which  consists  in  our 
daily  feeling  ourselves  to  become  better.  The  good 
parts  he  hath  he  will  learn  to  show  to  the  full,  and  use 
them  dexterously,  but  not  much  to  increase  them  ;  the 
faults  he  hath,  he  will  learn  how  to  hide  and  color  them, 
but  not  much  to  amend  them ;  like  an  ill  mower,  that 
mows  on  still  and  never  whets  his  scythe.  Whereas, 
with  the  learned  man  it  fares  otherwise,  that  he  doth 
ever  intermix  the  correction  and  amendment  of  his  mind 
with  the  use  and  employment  thereof.  francis  bacon. 


In  thine  own  circumference,  as  in  that  of  the  earth, 
let  the  rational  horizon  be  larger  than  the  sensible,  and 
the  circle  of  reason  than  of  sense ;  let  the  divine  part  be 
upward,  and  the  region  of  beast  below  ;  otherwise  it  is 
but  to  live  invertedly,  and  with  thy  head  unto  the  heels 
of  thy  antipodes.  "  sir  thomas  brownh. 

DEVELOPMENT   OF  INDIVIDUALITY. 

The  teacher  is  to  develop  individuality,  not  to  absorb 
it.  She  should  teach  pupils  to  do,  not  what  she  wills, 
because  she  wills  it,  but  what  is  right,  because  it  is 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  47 

right.  The  moment  Miss  Duzenberry  leaves  her  room, 
the  pupils  are  in  an  uproar,  showing  by  their  extrava- 
gant misbehavior  how  great  was  the  will-pressure  upon 
them,  and  how  lamentable  a  reaction  is  sure  to  follow 
when  the  pressure  is  removed.  Besides,  think  what  a 
strain  it  puts  upon  these  little  minds  and  bodies.  Our 
whole  system  of  primary  instruction  is  barbarous.  But 
when  to  the  crowded  seats,  bad  ventilation,  infectious 
atmosphere,  long  hours,  and  unnatural  discipline,  you  add 
a  constant  nervous  excitement,  you  have  every  requisite 
for  fitting  children  for  mad-houses  or  for  coffins. 

C.  W.  Bardeen. 


SELF,   NOT  ANCESTORS. 

Feel  something  of  thyself  in  the  noble  acts  of  thy 
ancestors,  and  find  in  thy  own  genius  that  of  thy  prede- 
cessor. Rest  not  under  the  expired  merits  of  others ; 
shine  by  those  of  thine  own.  Flame  not  like  the  cen- 
tral fire,  which  enlighteneth  no  eyes,  which  no  man 
seeth,  and  most  men  think  there  is  no  such  thing  to  be 
seen.  Add  one  ray  unto  the  common  lustre  ;  add  not 
only  to  the  number,  but  the  note,  of  thy  generation ; 
and  prove  not  a  cloud,  but  an  asterisk,  in  thy  region. 

Sir  Thomas  Browne. 


In  truth,  though  a  man  be  neither  mechanic  or  peas- 
ant, .but  only  one  having  a  pot  to  boil,  he  is  sure  to  learn 
from  science  lessons  which  will  enable  him  to  cook  his 
morsel  better,  save  his  fuel,  and  both  vary  his  dish  and 
improve  it. 

Lord  Brougham. 


48 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


IDEAL  SCHOOL  OFFICERS. 


We  cannot  expect  that  a  race  of  educational  experts 
will  suddenly  appear  to  manage  the  public  interests  of 
the  school,  any  more  than  we  can  expect  a  race  of 
statesmen  to  grow  up  from  the  seed  of  dragon's  teeth 
sown  in  political  fields  for  the  last  quarter  of  a  century. 
We  can  ask  that  the  best  men  of  the  community,  its 
wise  men,  its  conservative  men,  its  learned  men,  shall 
stand  at  the  head  of  educational  concerns.  School  offi- 
cers should  be  broad  in  view,  liberal  in  opinion,  possessed 
of  good  common  sense,  and  know  the  difference  between 
a  good  school  and  a  poor  one,  between  cheapness  and 
fitness,  between  a  wise  economy  and  disastrous  ruin. 
Such  men  need  not  necessarily  know  Latin  or  Greek, 
may  have  never  seen  the  inner  walls  of  a  college,  or  have 
borne  the  honorable  titles  of  Esquire,  Reverend,  or  Hon- 
orable. 

Thomas  W.  Bicknell. 


DWARFED  FACULTIES. 

A  LARGE  portion  of  my  own  life  has  been  devoted  to 
the  teaching  of  physics.  During  all  this  time  it  has 
been  manifest  to  me  that  my  classes  have  come  to  this 
part  of  their  course  totally  unpractised  how  to  observe. 
And  it  has  seemed  to  me  that  their  perceptive  faculties 
have  been  actually  dwarfed  by  the  forced  inaction  to 
which  they  have  been  constrained  during  the  period 
most  favorable  to  their  cultivation.  Thus  it  has  hap- 
pened that  the  brief  time  which  can  only  be  given  to 
these  subjects  in  the  college  course  has  been  exhausted 
in  the  attempt  to  convey  such  elementary  notions  as 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  49 

should  have  been  familiar  long  before.  And  the  same 
observation  has  been  made  to  me  by  other  gentlemen, 
who  are  among  the  most  skilled  instructors  in  science 
that  I  have  ever  known.  If,  then,  I  am  asked  if  I  would 
displace  these  subjects  from  the  position  they  occupy  in 
the  course  of  collegiate  instruction,  I  would  answer,  by 
no  means.  What  I  would  desire  would  be  to  secure 
such  an  early  culture,  and  such  an  acquaintance  with 
the  elements  of  science,  that  it  might  be  permitted  us 
to  give,  at  this  more  advanced  period,  such  larger  views 
and  such  profounder  applications  of  the  principles  of 
these  sciences,  that  the  student  might  feel  in  the  end 
that  he  had  acquired  some  mastery  over  them,  and 
might  be  qualified  to  prosecute  inquiry  independently 
and  profitably  after  he  had  mastered  them. 

F.  A.  p.  Barnard. 


ALL  COMPLETE. 


When  a  man  is  developed  up  to  his  true  nature,  the 
reason,  every  part  of  it,  must  be  brought  to  its  full ;  the 
moral  sentiments,  each  of  them,  must  be  brought  to 
their  full ;  the  social  faculties  must  be  brought  to  their 
full  ;  every  part  of  the  mind  must  be  brought  to  its  full ; 
and  each  must  learn  its  role. 

H.  W.  Beecher. 


HOW  I  WAS  EDUCATED. 


I  HAVE  thus  briefly  stated  all  that  occurs  to  me  as 
likely  to  be  of  use  to  others,  in  regard  to  the  process  of 
my  education.  As  I  look  back  upon  the  history,  in 
addition  to  the  suggestions  that  might  naturally  occur, 


^O  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

two  or  three  impressions  remain  profoundly  fixed  in  my 
mind.  One  is,  that  with  whatever  opportunities,  all 
higher  education  is  essentially  self-education.  Teachers 
do  not  make  the  scholar.  The  impulse  comes  chiefly 
from  within  ;  and  the  student  becomes  the  scholar  when 
he  ceases  to  confine  himself  to  prescribed  tasks  or  pre- 
vious limits,  and  spontaneously  reaches  out  beyond. 
Another  strong  impression  made  upon  me  is,  that  the 
best  preliminary  preparation  for  even  the  studies  of  a 
specialist  is  a  liberal  education.  Such  an  education  con- 
nects him  with  the  wide  circle  of  thought  and  knowl- 
edge, and  saves  him  from  narrowness  and  hobbies.  The 
man  who  can  do  one  thing  best  is  usually  a  man  who 
could  have  done  other  things  well.  It  has  also  been  my 
observation  that  such  a  liberal  education  as  will  fit  the 
man  in  due  time  to  grapple  most  effectually  with  any 
specialty,  consists  more  in  training  than  in  acquisition. 
The  man  that  is  thoroughly  master  of  his  own  powers 
will  master  any  sphere  or  theme  to  which  he  is  called. 

S.  C.  Bartlett. 


Example   yields  the  most  compendious  instruction, 
together  with  the  most  efficacious  incitement  to  action. 

Isaac  Barrow. 


TEACHING,  A  FINE  ART. 

I  HAVE  done  my  work  inspired  with  the  idea  that 
teaching  is  a  beautiful  art  and  a  noble  vocation.  To 
me  the  teacher  has  seemed  to  be  an  artist  shaping  the 
minds  of  his  pupils  into  higher  forms,  and  through  them 
moulding  the  generation  in  which  they  live.     The  true 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


51 


teacher  has  seemed  to  be  painting  pictures  on  the  canvas 
of  mind  that  shall  last  through  the  generations,  and  fade 
not  in  eternity.  My  own  work  was  largely  inspired  by 
the  spirit  of  the  sentiment  so  felicitously  phrased  by  an 
English  writer,  "  that  divine  and  beautiful  thing  called 
teaching." 

Edward  Brooks. 


It  is  the  man  who  takes  in  who  can  give  out.  The 
man  who  does  not  do  the  one  soon  takes  to  spinning 
his  own  fancies  out  of  his  interior,  like  a  spider,  and  he 
snares  himself  at  last,  as  well  as  his  victims. 

Dr.  John  Brown. 


INSPIRE  A  LOVE  OF  KNOWLEDGE. 

This  is  indeed  something  worth  being  enthusiastic 
for.  To  convince  boys  that  intellectual  growth  is 
noble,  and  intellectual  labor  happy,  that  they  are  travel- 
ling on  no  purposeless  errand,  mounting  higher  every 
step  of  the  way,  and  may  as  truly  enjoy  the  toil  that 
lifts  them  above  their  former  selves,  as  they  enjoy  a 
race  or  a  climb ;  to  help  the  culture  of  their  minds  by 
every  faculty  of  moral  force,  of  physical  vigor,  of  mem- 
ory, of  fancy,  of  humor,  of  pathos,  of  banter,  that  we 
have  ourselves,  and  lead  them  to  trust  in  knowledge,  to 
hope  for  it,  to  cherish  it ;  this,  succeed  as  it  may  here 
and  fail  there,  quickened  as  it  may  be  by  health  and 
sympathy,  or  deadened  by  fatigue  or  disappointment,  is 
a  work  which  has  in  it  most  of  the  elements  which  life 
needs  to  give  it  zest.  It  is  not  to  be  done  by  putting 
books  before  boys,  and  hearing  them  so  much  at  a  time ; 


52 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


or  by  offering  prizes  and  punishments ;  or  by  assuring 
them  that  every  English  gentleman  knows  Horace.  It 
is  by  making  it  certain  to  the  understanding  of  every 
one  that  we  think  the  knowledge  worth  having  our- 
selves, and  mean  in  every  possible  way,  by  versatile  oral 
teaching,  by  patient  guidance,  by  tone  and  manner  and 
look,  by  anger  and  pity,  by  determination  even  to  amuse, 
by  frank  allowance  for  dulness  and  even  for  indolence, 
to  help  them  to  attain  a  little  of  what  gives  us  such 
pleasure.  A  man  or  an  older  pupil  can  find  this  help 
in  books ;  a  young  boy  needs  it  from  the  words  and 
gestures  of  a  teacher.  There  is  no  fear  of  loss  of  dig- 
nity ;  the  work  of  teaching  will  be  respected  when  the 
things  that  are  taught  begin  to  deserve  respect. 

Above  all,  the  work  must  be  easy.  Few  boys  are 
ever  losers  from  finding  their  task  too  simple,  for  they 
can  always  aspire  to  learning  what  is  harder  ;  many 
have  had  their  school  career  ruined  from  being  set  to 
attack  what  was  too  hard.  It  may  be  said,  perhaps, 
that  what  was  easy  enough  for  past  generations  ought 
to  be  easy  enough  for  the  present.  Those  who  urge 
this  view,  may  simply  be  asked  whether  they  are  satis- 
fied with  the  working  of  the  classical  education  that 
exists.  Allowing  that  the  very  best  scholars  can  assimi- 
late anything  whatever,  and  that  with  the  very  worst  it 
is  next  to  useless  to  try  at  all,  is  it  true  to  say  that  the 
average  boys  have  a  fair  chance  of  making  the  most  of 
their  powers }  If  not,  there  are  two  resources  before 
the  teacher.  He  can,  as  is  elsewhere  pointed  out,  vary 
and  enlarge  the  basis  of  education ;  he  can  also  teach 
classics  so  as  to  include  more  that  is  of  rational  interest, 
and  less  that  is  of  pedantic  routine. 


E.  E.  BowEN. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  53 


THE   TEACHER  TAUGHT. 

O'er  wayward  children  wouldst  thou  hold  firm  rule, 

And  sun  thee  in  the  light  of  happy  faces ; 

Love,  Hope,  and  Patience,  —  these  must  be  the  graces. 

And  in  thine  own  heart  let  them  first  keep  school! 

For,  as  old  Atlas  on  his  broad  neck  places 

Heaven's  starry  globe,  and  there  sustains  it,  so 

Do  these  upbear  the  little  world  below 

Of  education  —  Patience,  Hope,  and  Love  ! 

Methinks  I  see  them  grouped  in  seemly  show,  — 

The  straitened  arms  upraised,  —  the  palms  aslope,  — 

And  robes  that  touching,  as  adown  they  flow. 

Distinctly  blend,  like  snow  embossed  in  snow. 

O  part  them  never !  if  Hope  prostrate  lie, 

Love,  too,  will  sink  and  die. 
But  Love  is  subtle ;  and  will  proof  derive, 
From  her  own  life,  that  Hope  is  still  alive. 
And  bending  o'er,  with  soul-transfusing  eyes, 
And  the  soft  murmurs  of  the  mother  dove, 
Woos  back  the  fleeting  spirit,  and  half  supplies. 
Thus  Love  repays  to   Hope  what   Hope  first  gave  to 

Love ! 
Yet  haply  there  will  come  a  weary  day. 
When,  overtasked,  at  length. 
Both  Love  and  Hope  beneath  the  load  give  way, 
Then,  with  a  statue's  smile,  a  statue's  strength. 
Stands  the  mute  sister,  Patience,  —  nothing  loath  ; 
And,  both  supporting,  does  the  work  of  both. 

Samuel  T.  Coleridge. 


54 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


Observe  with  the  utmost  attention  all  the  opera- 
tions of  your  own  mind,  the  nature  of  your  passions, 
and  the  various  motives  that  determine  your  will,  and 
you  may,  in  a  great  degree,  know  all  mankind. 


Lord  Chesterfield. 


MORAL  LESSONS   INCIDENTALLY. 

To  the  schoolroom  the  teacher  should  bring  the  per- 
sonal influence,  the  inspiration,  so  to  speak,  of  a  charac- 
ter in  which  the  gentle  as  well  as  the  heroic  virtues  are 
conspicuous.  And  here  every  opportunity  should  be 
embraced  to  impress,  by  example,  by  precept,  by  illus- 
tration, upon  the  minds  of  the  scholars  the  paramount 
importance  of  the  cultivation  of  the  moral  faculties 
co-equal  with  the  intellectual.  I  would  not  have  this 
sentiment  acquired  by  committing  to  memory  printed 
answers  to  printed  questions,  neither  would  I  encourage 
a  great  amount  of  preaching  by  the  teacher ;  but  I  would 
have  a  constant  sifting-in,  a  mingling  of  the  moral  with 
the  mental  food,  as  salt  is  mingled  with  the  physical. 

Scarcely  a  lesson  need  occur  from  which  some  moral 
instruction  may  not  be  drawn.  For  example :  in  the 
study  of  geography  and  history,  the  benefits  of  peace, 
of  brotherhood,  and  of  unselfish  international  exchange ; 
in  zoology,  kindness  to  animals ;  in  natural  philosophy 
and  chemistry,  the  wonderful  harmony  and  fitness  of 
things,  one  toward  another ;  in  mathematics,  the  exact- 
ness of  proper  methods  in  producing  certain  desirable 
results,  —  may  all  be  made  by  skilful,  conscientious 
handling,  to  lead  to  a  perception  of  the  excellence  of 
right-doing  in  the  conduct  of  life. 

Mrs.  Elizabeth  6.  Chacb. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


APPLICATION. 


55 


For  stern,  close  thought,  the  mind  must  be  schooled 
by  habits  of  close  application,  and  this  is  more  rare  than 
one  would  imagine ;  for,  notwithstanding  what  is  called 
application  in  our  public  schools,  the  mind  is  so  little 
employed  in  it,  that  few  men  ever  know  how  to  isolate 
themselves  from  present  objects  enough  to  think  really, 
and  the  habit  is  easily  lost. 

Caroline  F.  Cornwallis. 


PRODIGIES. 

I  GRANT  that  the  education  which  cultivates  only  the 
memory  may  make  prodigies,  and  that  it  has  done  so ; 
but  these  prodigies  last  only  during  the  time  of  infancy. 
.  .  .  He  who  knows  only  by  heart,  knows  nothing.  .  .  . 
He  who  has  not  learned  to  reflect  has  not  been  in- 
structed, or,  what  is  still  worse,  has  been  poorly  in- 
structed. 

CONDILLAC. 


THINGS,   NOT   THEIR   SHADOWS. 

In  the  place  of  dead  books,  why  should  we  not  open 
the  living  book  of  nature .?  .  .  .  To  instruct  the  young 
is  not  to  beat  into  them  by  repetition  a  mass  of  words, 
phrases,  sentences,  and  opinions  gathered  out  of  authors ; 
but  it  is  to  open  their  understanding  through  things.  .  .  . 
The  foundation  of  all  knowledge  consists  in  correctly 
representing  sensible  objects  to  our  senses,  so  that  they 
can  be  comprehended  with  facility.  I  hold  that  this  is 
the  basis  of  all  our  other  activities,  since  we  could  neither 
act  nor  speak  wisely  unless  we  adequately  comprehended 


56  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

what  we  were  to  do  and  say.  Now  it  is  certain  that 
there  is  nothing  in  the  understanding  that  was  not  first 
in  the  senses,  and,  consequently,  it  is  to  lay  the  founda- 
tion of  all  wisdom,  of  all  eloquence,  and  of  all  good  and 
prudent  conduct,  carefully  to  train  the  senses  to  note 
with  accuracy  the  differences  between  natural  objects ; 
and  as  this  point,  important  as  it  is,  is  ordinarily  neg- 
lected in  the  schools  of  to-day,  and  as  objects  are  pro- 
posed to  scholars  that  they  do  not  understand  because 
they  have  not  been  properly  represented  to  their  senses 
or  to  their  imagination,  it  is  for  this  reason,  on  the  one 
hand,  that  the  toil  of  teaching,  and  on  the  other,  that 
the  pain  of  learning,  have  become  so  burdensome  and 
so  unfruitful.  .  .  .  We  must  offer  to  the  young,  not  the 
shadows  of  things,  but  the  things  themselves,  which 
impress  the  senses  and  the  imagination.  Instruction 
should  commence  with  a  real  observation  of  things,  and 
not  with  a  verbal  description  of  them. 

John  Amos  Comenius. 


INTELLECTUAL  FORCE. 

The  elevation  of  man  is  to  be  sought,  or  rather  con- 
sists, first  in  force  of  thought  exerted  for  the  acquisition 
of  truth;  thought  is  the  fundamental  distinction  of 
mind,  and  the  great  work  of  life.  All  that  a  man  does 
outwardly  is  but  the  expression  and  completion  of  his 
inward  thought.  To  work  effectually,  he  must  think 
clearly ;  to  act  nobly,  he  must  think  nobly.  Intellect- 
ual force  is  a  principal  element  of  the  soul's  life,  and 
should  be  proposed  by  every  man  as  the  principal  end 
of  his  being. 

W.  E.  Channing. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


THEORY  AND  PRACTICE. 


57 


I,  FOR  one,  esteem  practice.  I  trace  all  real  knowl- 
edge to  experience.  I  care  for  no  theories,  no  systems, 
no  generalizations,  which  do  not  spring  from  life  and 
return  to  it  again.  I  feel  perhaps  undue  contempt  for 
the  vague  abstractions  we  often  listen  to,  idle  figments 
of  an  idle  brain,  speculations  with  no  basis  of  sharp 
observation  beneath  them.  Yet  we  are  in  danger  of 
going  too  far  in  this  direction,  and  of  undervaluing 
theory  in  its  proper  limits.  People  often  eulogize  Prac- 
tice when  they  only  mean  Rotitine^  boasting  themselves 
as  practical  teachers,  intending  thereby  that  they  only 
do  what  always  has  been  done,  and  do  not  mean  to  do 
any  better  to-morrow  than  they  did  yesterday.  Practice 
and  theory  must  go  together.  Theory,  without  practice 
to  test  it,  to  verify  it,  to  correct  it,  is  idle  speculation ; 
but  practice,  without  theory  to  animate  it,  is  mere 
mechanism.  In  every  art  and  business  theory  is  the  soul 
and  practice  the  body.  The  soul  without  a  body  in 
which  to  dwell  is  indeed  only  a  ghost,  but  the  body 
without  a  soul  is  only  a  corpse.  I  pass  a  sign  often  on 
which  the  artisan  has  painted  "John  Smith  "  (or  what- 
ever the  name  may  be),  "Practical  Plumber."  I  should 
not  wish  to  employ  him.  When  the  water-works  in  my 
house  get  out  of  order,  I  want  a  theoretical  plumber  as 
well  as  one  who  is  practical.  I  want  a  man  who  under- 
stands the  theory  of  hydrostatic  pressure ;  who  knows 
the  laws  giving  resisting  qualities  to  lead,  iron,  zinc,  and 
copper,  —  who  can  so  arrange  and  plan  beforehand  the 
order  of  pipes  that  he  shall  accomplish  the  results  aimed 
at  with  the  smallest  amount  of  piping,  the  least  expos- 


58  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

ure  to  frost,  the  least  danger  of  leakage  or  breakage; 
and  this,  a  merely  practical  man,  a  man  of  routine,  can- 
not do.  The  merest  artisan  needs  to  theorize,  i.e.,  to 
think,  —  to  think  beforehand,  to  foresee ;  and  that  must 
be  done  by  the  aid  of  general  principles,  by  the  knowledge 
of  laws.  An  intelligent  man,  a  man  of  general  culture, 
whose  mind  has  been  quickened  with  ideas,  will  often 
be  able  to  show  a  mechanic  how  to  do  his  own  work. 
When  we  are  young,  we  have  a  superstitious  faith  in 
the  knowledge  each  man  is  supposed  to  have  of  his  own 
business.  We  outgrow  this  after  a  while.  If  you  wish 
anything  done  about  your  house,  send  for  a  mechanic  ; 
but  overlook  him,  do  not  leave  him  to  himself.  You 
will  presently  find  that  you  can  suggest  something  to 
him  in  his  own  work,  which  he  never  thought  of.  All 
success  depends  on  practice,  but  all  improvement  on 
theory.     Let  neither  despise  the  other. 

James  Freeman  Clarke. 


The  great  result  of  schooling  is  a  mind  with  just 
vision  to  discern,  with  free  force  to  do  ;  the  grand 
schoolmaster  is  Practice. 

Thomas  Carlyle. 


MORAL  TEACHINGS   OF  HISTORY. 

But  history  should  be  studied  with  a  moral  purpose 
as  well  as  an  intellectual.  No  one  who  is  not  more  or 
less  acquainted  with  his  country  can  feel  an  enlightened 
interest  in  its  fame  and  its  privileges,  can  judge  of  those 
discussions  of  vital  moment  which  are  unceasingly  on 
the  lips  of  a  free  people,  or  can  understand  its  current 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  ^g 

literature.  And  he  is  excluded  from  all  those  pleasant 
associations  which  almost  every  spot  of  its  soil  suggests 
to  him  who  has  traced  its  growth  from  infancy  to  man- 
hood. But  beyond  contributing  in  an  indirect  way  to 
raise  the  whole  tone  and  temper  of  those  who  read  it, 
history  stands  forth  with  claims  to  be  regarded  as  a 
great  moral  teacher.  It  exhibits  the  punishment  of 
crime,  it  may  be  after  temporary  success ;  and,  where 
crime  seems  to  prosper  continuously,  the  miseries  which 
follow  in  its  train.  It  draws  lessons  of  personal  im- 
provement from  the  characters  who  appear  upon  its 
stage,  whether  good  or  bad  ;  from  the  devotion  of  the 
patriot,  the  fortitude  of  the  martyr,  the  integrity  of  the 
honorable,  and  the  charity  of  the  pious,  not  less  than 
from  the  craft  and  falsehood  of  the  intriguer,  the  cor- 
ruptness of  the  unjust,  and  the  unscrupulousness  of  the 
selfish.  The  reader  should  have  his  own  character 
heightened  by  the  attraction  of  the  virtuous  and  by  the 
repulsion  of  the  vicious.  Thus  it  is  that  this  sufject 
occupies  no  mean  place  amongst  the  instruments  for 
forming  the  moral  judgment  of  youth. 

James  Currie. 


DILIGENCE. 


There  is  an  advice  I  must  give  you  —  the  summary 
of  all  advices,  and  doubtless  you  have  heard  it  a  thou- 
sand times ;  but  you  must  hear  it  once  more,  for  it  is 
most  intensely  true,  whether  you  believe  it  or  not. 
That  above  all  things  the  interest  of  your  whole  life 
depends  upon  your  being  diligent  and  honest,  now  while 
it  is  called  to-day,  in  this  place,  where  you  have  come 


6o  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

to  get  your  education  !  Diligence !  that  includes  in  it  all 
virtues  that  a  student  can  have ;  I  include  in  it  all  those 
qualities  of  conduct  and  attention  that  lead  to  the 
acquirement  of  real  instruction  in  such  a  place.  This 
is  the  seed-time  of  life  —  and  as  you  sow,  so  will  you 
reap ;  this  the  fluid  condition  of  your  mind,  and  as  it 
hardens  into  habits,  so  will  it  retain  the  consistency  of 
rock  and  of  iron  to  the  end.  By  diligence  I  mean  hon- 
esty, not  only  as  to  time,  but  as  to  your  knowledge. 
Grant  a  thing  as  known  only  when  it  is  clearly  yours, 
and  is  transparent  to  you,  so  that  you  can  survey  it  on 
all  sides  with  intelligence.  Don't  flourish  about  with 
what  you  only  know  the  outside  of,  and  don't  cram  with 
undigested  fragments  for  examinations.  Be  modest,  be 
humble,  be  assiduous,  and  as  early  as  you  can  find  out 
what  kind  of  work  you  individually  can  do  in  this 
universe,  and  qualify  yourself  for  doing  it. 

Thomas  Carlyle. 


It  is  attention  which  fixes  objects  in  the  memory. 
There  is  no  surer  mark  of  a  mean  and  meagre  intellect  in 
the  world  than  inattention.  All  that  is  worth  the  trou- 
ble of  doing  at  all,  deserves  to  be  done  well,  and  nothing 
can  be  well  done  without  attention. 

Lord  Chesterfield. 


MARCUS  AUREUUS. 

The  wisest  of  the  Roman  emperors,  the  author  of  the 
book  entitled  To  Myself^  better  known  as  Meditations, 
Marcus  Aurelius,  deserves  mention  in  the  history  of 
pedagogy.     He  is  perhaps  the  most  perfect  representa- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  gi 

tive  of  Stoic  morality,  which  is  itself  the  highest  expres- 
sion of  ancient  morality.  He  is  the  most  finished  type 
of  what  can  be  effected  in  the  way  of  soul-culture  by 
the  influence  of  home  training  and  the  personal  effort 
of  the  conscience.  His  teacher  of  rhetoric  was  the  cele- 
brated Fronto,  of  whose  character  we  may  judge  from 
this  one  characteristic :  "  I  toiled  hard  yesterday/'  he 
wrote  to  his  pupil ;  "  I  composed  a  few  figures  of 
speech,  with  which  I  am  pleased."  On  the  other 
hand,  Marcus  Aurelius  found  examples  for  imitation 
in  his  own  family.  "My  uncle,"  he  says,  reverently, 
*'  taught  me  patience.  From  my  father  I  inherited  mod- 
esty. To  my  mother  I  owe  my  feelings  of  piety." 
Notwithstanding  the  modesty  that  led  him  to  attribute 
to  others  the  whole  of  his  moral  worth,  it  is  especially 
to  himself,  to  a  persistent  effort  of  his  own  will,  and 
to  a  ceaseless  examination  of  his  own  conscience,  that 
he  is  indebted  for  becoming  the  most  virtuous  of  men, 
and  the  wisest  and  purest,  next  to  Socrates,  of  the 
moralists  of  antiquity.  His  Meditations  show  us  in 
action  that  self-education  which  in  our  time  has  sug- 
gested such  beautiful  reflections  to  Channing. 

Gabriel  Compayre, 


EXAMINING  BOARDS. 

It  requires  men  of  great  and  versatile  experience  to 
be  able  to  ask  such  suggestive  questions  as  can  fully 
test  the  general  knowledge  and  capabilities  of  a  teacher. 
It  is  very  easy  to  give  simple  puzzles  and  test  a  per- 
son's knowledge  on  particular  points ;  but  examining 
boards  have,  or  should  have,  a  far  more  difficult  duty 


62  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

to  perform,  and  hence  should  be  composed  of  profes- 
sional teachers  only.  Who  would  think  of  building 
a  ship,  and  asking  a  doctjDr  to  examine  it  to  see  if  it 
was  seaworthy  ?  But  you  can  build  your  schools,  send 
your  children  there,  and  then  get  men  who  have  not 
been  in  school  in  forty  years,  and  know  nothing  of 
modern  methods  and  regime,  to  go  and  examine  the 
teachers,  simply  because  some  of  these  men  once  at- 
tended a  college.  The  absurdity  of  this  foolish  system 
is  only  too  evident.  The  examining  board  should  con- 
sist of  teachers  of  the  highest  ability  and  success. 

J.   W.   CORTHELL. 


THE  COUNTRY'S  REQUIREMENTS. 

Our  country  has  not  given  us  birth,  or  educated  us 
under  her  law,  as  if  she  expected  no  succor  from  us  ;  or 
that,  seeking  to  administer  to  our  convenience  only, 
she  might  afford  a  safe  retreat  for  the  indulgence  of 
our  ease,  or  a  peaceful  asylum  for  our  indolence ;  but 
that  she  might  hold  in  pledge  the  various  and  most 
exalted  powers  of  our  mind,  our  genius,  and  our  judg- 
ment for  her  own  benefit,  and  that  she  might  leave  for 
our  private  use  such  portions  only  as  might  be  spared 
for  that  purpose.  Cicero. 

HOW   I   LEARNED   ORATORY. 

I  OWE  my  own  success  in  life  chiefly  to  one  circum- 
stance, that,  at  the  age  of  twenty-seven,  I  commenced, 
and  continued  for  years,  the  process  of  daily  reading 
and  speaking  upon  the  contents  of  some  historical  or 
scientific    book.      These    off-hand    efforts   were   made 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  63 

sometimes  in  a  cornfield,  at  others  in  the  forest,  and 
not  unfrequently  in  some  distant  barn,  with  the  horse 
and  ox  for  my  auditors.  It  is  to  this  early  practice 
of  the  art  of  all  arts  that  I  am  indebted  for  the  primary 
and  leading  impulses  that  stimulated  me  onward  and 
have  shaped  and  moulded  my  whole  subsequent  destiny. 

Henry  Clay. 

All  knowledge  which  is  not  followed  by  action  is  un- 
profitable and  imperfect,  like  a  beginning  without  an 
end,  or  a  foundation  without  a  superstructure. 

Cicero. 


ESSENTIALS  FIRST. 

The  principle  of  dealing  with  essentials  mainly  should 
prevail  in  all  the  work  of  education.  We  have  too  much 
to  do  to  spend  time  fooling  over  complicated  arithmeti- 
cal puzzles  which  abound  in  some  books  —  questions 
which  no  one  should  undertake  to  solve  till  well  versed 
in  algebra  and  geometry.  At  the  proper  stage  of  edu- 
cation, such  puzzles,  which  are  a  discouragement  to  the 
young  scholar,  because  he  thinks  them  essential  to  the 
subject,  will  be  solved  in  the  r^atural  progress  of  his 
work.  They  are  an  annoyance  and  discouragement 
simply  because  they  are  introduced  before  their  time, 
—  before  the  study  of   the  principles  on  which  their 

solution  depends.  Paul  a.  Chadbourne. 

OF  BOOKS. 
It  is  chiefly  through  books  that  we  enjoy  intercourse 
with    superior  minds ;   and   these  invaluable  means  of 
communication  are  in  the  reach  of  all.      In  the  best 


64  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

books,  great  men  talk  to  us,  give  us  their  most  pre- 
cious thoughts,  and  pour  their  souls  into  ours.  God 
be  thanked  for  books  !  They  are  the  voices  of  the  dis- 
tant and  the  dead,  and  make  us  heirs  of  the  spiritual 
life  of  past  ages.  Books  are  the  true  levellers.  They 
give  to  all  who  will  faithfully  use  them  the  society,  the 
spiritual  presence  of  the  best  and  greatest  of  our  race. 
No  matter  how  poor  I  am ;  no  matter  though  the  pros- 
perous of  my  own  time  will  not  enter  my  obscure  dwell- 
ing ;  if  the  sacred  writers  will  enter  and  take  up  their 
abode  under  my  roof,  if  Milton  will  cross  my  threshold  to 
sing  to  me  of  Paradise,  and  Shakespeare  to  open  to  me 
the  worlds  of  imagination  and  the  workings  of  the 
human  heart,  and  Franklin  to  enrich  me  with  his  prac- 
tical wisdom,  I  shall  not  pine  for  want  of  intellectual 
companionship ;  and  I  may  become  a  cultivated  man 
though  excluded  from  what  is  called  the  best  society 
in  the  place  where  I  live. 

W.  E.  Channing. 


It  depends  on  what  we  read,  after  all  manner  of  pro- 
fessors have  done  their  best  for  us.  The  true  univer- 
sity of  these  days  is  a  collection  of  books. 


Thomas  Carlyle. 


THE  PROBLEM. 


To  cause  gross  natures  to  pass  from  the  life  of  the 
senses  to  the  intellectual  life ;  to  make  study  agreeable 
to  the  end  that  the  higher  pleasures  of  the  spirit  may 
struggle  successfully  against  the  appetites  for  material 
pleasures ;  to  put  the  book  in  the  place  of  the  wine 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


65 


bottle  ;  to  substitute  the  library  for  the  saloon  ;  in  a 
word,  to  replace  sensation  by  idea  !  —  such  is  the  funda- 
mental problem  of  popular  education. 


CONDORCET. 


GRECIAN  PEDAGOGY. 

Upon  that  privileged  soil  of  Greece,  in  that  brilliant 
Athens  abounding  in  artists,  poets,  historians,  and  phi- 
losophers, in  that  rude  Sparta  celebrated  for  its  discipline 
and  manly  virtues,  education  was  rather  the  spontaneous 
fruit  of  nature,  the  natural  product  of  diverse  manners, 
characters,  and  races,  than  the  premeditated  result  of 
a  reflective  movement  of  the  human  will.  Greece,  how- 
ever, had  its  pedagogy,  because  it  had  its  legislators  and 
its  philosophers,  the  first  directing  education  in  its 
practical  details,  the  second  making  theoretical  inquiries 
into  the  essential  principles  underlying  the  development 
of  the  human  soul.  In  respect  of  education,  as  of  every- 
thing else,  the  higher  spiritual  life  of  modern  nations 
has  been  developed  under  the  influence  of  Grecian  an- 

*■       ^'  Gabriel  Compayre. 

•       THE  NEW  CIVILIZATION. 

The  new  civilization,  which  moves  on  through  the 
development  of  the  forces  of  nature,  recognizes  the 
truth  that  life  is  more  than  meat,  and  the  body  more 
than  raiment.  In  no  other  age,  in  no  other  country, 
has  man,  as  an  intellectual  and  moral  being,  been  held 
at  so  high  a  value  as  at  the  present  time  and  in  this 
country.  It  is  this  recognition  of  the  worth  of  human 
beings   that   arches   all  the  future  with   radiant  light. 


^  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

Men  are  no  longer  mere  food  for  powder,  —  the  many 
created  to  do  the  bidding  of  the  few.  The  new  civiHza- 
tion  not  only  recognizes  the  right  of  every  human  being 
to  make  the  most  of  himself,  but  regards  it  the  duty  of 
society  to  aid  him.  In  no  other  country  is  there  such 
recognition  of  this  obligation  as  in  this  land  of  ours. 
Here  the  common  school,  the  high  school,  the  college, 
the  university,  the  liberal  arts,  special  instruction,  pub- 
lic libraries  free  to  rich  and  poor,  are  the  institutions 
that  give  regal  power  and  lease  of  life. 

Charles  Carleton  Coffin. 


VALUE   OF  KNOWLEDGE. 

What,  under  heaven,  can  there  be  more  worthy  of 
our  most  strenuous  attention,  than  knowledge ;  what 
more  worthy  of  our  highest  admiration }  Is  calmness 
or  serenity  of  mind  the  object  of  our  wishes  }  What 
so  likely  to  secure  it  as  the  pursuit  of  that  knowledge 
which  enables  us  to  enjoy  life  in  the  happiest  manner.? 
Or  dogwe  esteem  above  all  things  unsullied  integrity  and 
spotless  virtue.?  Either  the  study  and  acquisition  of 
wisdom  point  out  the  path,  or  there  is  none,  to  the  at- 
tainment of  these  distinctions.  Cicero. 


OBJECT-TEACHING. 

Objective  instruction  can  most  successfully  open 
the  portals  of  science  and  guide  the  early  steps  of  those 
who  enter  therein.  It  will  prepare  pupils  for  learning 
readily  from  all  sources,  and  lead  them  to  seek  books 
from  a  desire  to  know  what  others  have  discovered  in 
nature.     By  it  the  elementary  steps  in  knowledge  can 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


67 


be  taken  most  nearly  as  the  child  would  learn  the  same 
subject  from  objects  with  only  nature  for  its  guide.  It 
adapts  the  subject  and  the  manner  of  instruction  to  the 
mental  conditions  of  pupils  in  all  their  varying  aspects." 
No  text-book  can  successfully  meet  these  different  con- 
ditions ;  only  the  living  teacher  can  so  present  the 
matter  of  instruction  as  to  harmonize  in  time  and  man- 
ner with  their  needs. 

In  the  various  stages  of  school  instruction,  whatever 
may  be  the  subject,  let  the  teacher  prepare  the  pupils 
for  studying  it  by  introducing  it  orally,  and  whenever 
necessary,  illustrating  its  chief  points  so  that  these  shall 
be  clearly  understood  by  them ;  then  assign  the  same 
subject  as  a  lesson  to  be  studied  in  the  text-book,  and 
afterwards  recited  by  them  and  further  explained  by  the 
teacher.  By  this  means  habits  of  giving  more  attention 
to  facts  and  ideas,  than  to  the  mere  forms  of  language, 
will  be  formed,  and  the  student's  progress  in  knowledge 
will  be  thorough,  practical,  and  rapid. 

N.  A.  Calkins. 


In  this  impulse  to  construct  and  destroy,  there  is  but 
the  effort  of  the  little  intelligence  to  succeed  in  making 
or  building  something  for  himself  ;  so  that  instead  of 
opposing  the  child  in  this,  he  should  be  encouraged  and 

gUiaed..  John  Amos  Comenius. 

The  large  place  assigned  to  music  by  Plato  and  Aris- 
totle, shows  that  the  culture  of  the  emotions  was  an 
important  element  in  Greek  education.  Esthetic  train- 
ing was  not  only  an  end  in  itself,  but  was  regarded  as 
the  basis  of  moral  and  religious  culture.      ^^^^^^^  compavre. 


68  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

SAVE  US   FROM   ROUTINE. 

I  AM  averse  to  **cut  and  dry  theories"  as  to  the  best 
possible  ways  of  teaching.  I  would  have  each  teacher 
observe  and  reflect  for  himself ;  but  by  all  means  save 
us  from  routine.  A  teacher  needs  knowledge  of  human 
nature,  and  he  needs  freedom  of  action  to  avail  himself, 
without  reserve,  of  all  the  varied  resources  fitted  to 
awaken  attention  and  stimulate  mental  activity.  .  .  . 
To  a  competent  teacher  the  work  never  can  be  uninter- 
esting. Those  who  wish  an  easy  life  would  act  wisely 
did  they  turn  in  some  other  direction  than  the  school- 
room. Those  who  are  willing  to  give  thought,  and 
patience,  and  strenuous  effort  to  the  work  of  life  will 
find  in  the  schoolroom  a  most  attractive  sphere  of  use- 
fulness. Much  is  said  of  the  routine  of  a  teacher's  life. 
It  is  a  one-sided  view  which  leads  to  the  remark.  In  so 
far  as  the  subjects  to  be  taught  are  concerned,  it  is  rou- 
tine, but  in  no  other  sense.  There  is,  indeed,  endless 
variety  in  school  life.  The  unfolding  of  youthful  minds, 
with  the  varying  phases  of  curiosity  and  carelessness, 
erroneous  apprehension,  and  quick  recognition  of  what 
is  taught,  presents  an  unceasing  source  of  attraction. 
The  early  attempts  at  self-government,  with  their  comi- 
cal failures  and  more  serious  outbreaks,  their  flow  of 
feeling,  now  playful,  now  serious,  and  again  deepening 
into  passion,  make  a  teacher's  life  one  of  the  most  lively. 
If  a  dull  feeling  of  sameness  creep  over  our  minds,  there 
is  something  wrong  with  ourselves  in  our  teaching. 
With  the  lofty  end  the  teacher  has  in  view,  and  the 
variety  of  nature  presented  in  a  considerable  gathering 
of  children,  a  teacher's  work  should  never  seem  tame. 

Henry  Calderwood. 


EDUCAirONAL  MOSAICS. 


69 


EXPERIENCE  AND   OBSERVATION. 

The  great  sources  of  wisdom  are  experience  and 
observation.  To  open  and  fix  the  eyes  upon  what 
passes  without  and  within  us  is  the  most  fruitful  study. 
Books  are  useful  chiefly  as  they  help  us  to  interpret  what 
we  see  and  experience.  When  they  absorb  men  as  they 
sometimes  do,  and  turn  them  from  the  observation  of 
nature  and  life,  they  generate  a  learned  folly  for  which 
the  plain  sense  of  the  illiterate  could  not  be  exchanged 
but  at  great  loss.  w.  e.  channino. 


ACTIVITY  NECESSARY. 

Especially  must  the  intelligence  be  nourished,  even 
as  the  body  is  nourished.  We  must  present  to  it  knowl- 
edge, which  is  the  wholesome  aliment  of  spirit,  opinions 
and  errors  being  aliment  that  is  poisonous.  It  is  also 
necessary  that  the  intelligence  be  active,  for  the  thought 
remains  imbecile  as  long  as,  passive  rather  than  active, 
it  moves  at  random.  condillac. 


DANGERS   OF  THE  ELECTIVE   SYSTEM. 

The  election  by  the  student  of  his  entire  course  of 
study  according  to  preference  or  caprice,  coupled  with 
so  much  or  so  little  attendance  on  instruction  as  may 
seem  to  him  reasonable,  encourages  the  impression  that 
his  opinion  is  valuable  on  all  subjects;  that  he  is  fully 
competent  to  deal  with  all  subjects,  certainly  to  estab- 
lish relative  values.  Accordingly,  he  attacks  and  settles 
in  a  few  moments  by  some  new  and  brilliant  solution 
questions  of  college  management  on  which  old  men  have 


70  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

Studied  with  anxiety  for  a  lifetime.  He  issues  in  his 
weekly  or  bi-weekly  sheets  the  lucubrations  of  those  few 
moments  charged  with  conceit,  if  not  with  rudeness. 
While  a  wise  individualism  is  the  proper  end  of  all 
discipline,  it  will  come  as  the  result  of  discipline,  and 
not  as  its  origin.  Individualism  without  discipline  is 
the  bane  of  our  country.  Honor  to  a  constant  con- 
trolling authority — a  subordination  of  personal  caprices 
and  whims,  and  even  of  rational  desires  to  the  best 
good  of  the  organism  —  is  the  imperative  need  of  this 
age,  and  should  be  a  marked  feature  in  the  character  of 
a  liberally  educated  man.  I  do  not  say  that  there  are 
not  many  cases  in  which  it  is  wise  and  best  for  a  young 
man  to  choose  his  instruction  to  a  certain  extent  with 
reference  to  his  life-work,  but  even  in  these  cases,  other 
and  wiser  men  ought  to  select  the  best  means  for  the 
end  that  he  proposes  for  himself.     Courses,  not  studies, 

should  be  elective.  Frankun  Carter. 

We  exhort  you,  then,  not  only  not  to  neglect  the  study 
of  letters,  but  to  devote  yourselves  to  them  with  all  your 

power.  Charlemagne. 

When  you  know  a  thing,  to  hold  that  you  know  it ; 
and  when  you  do  not  know  a  thing,  to  allow  that  you  do 

not  know  it  ;   this  is  knowledge.  Confucius. 


THE  STATESMAN'S   CARE. 
While  it  may  be  said  that  the  life  of  a  state  and  the 
preservation  of  its  liberties  depend  upon  the  courage  of 
the  people,  it  rs  equally  true  that  a  wise  administration 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  71 

of  its  laws  and  the  maintenance  of  order  and  happiness 
rest  upon  the  virtue  and  intelligence  of  its  citizens.  If 
this  proposition  is  admitted,  then  it  follows  that  the 
education  of  the  people  becomes  one  of  the  highest 
duties  of  the  state,  and  no  subject  is  more  worthy  the 
consideration  of  the  enlightened  statesman. 

N.  H.  R.  Dawson. 


THE  TEACHER'S   OPPORTUNITY. 

Every  schoolmaster  and  schoolmistress  in  the  Union 
may  reflect,  however  humble  or  secluded  be  his  station, 
that  he  has  the  opportunity  of  raising  his  school  to  an 
eminence.  He  may  do  his  part  towards  elevating  the 
standard  of  education,  and  sound  a  trumpet  to  the 
higher  institutions  to  elevate  theirs.  He  may  reflect, 
as  he  enters  the  door  of  his  schoolhouse,  whether  it  be 
in  the  populous  village  or  on  the  lonely  prairie  ;  whether 
on  the  bleak  hillside,  or  under  the  shade  of  the  grove ; 
whether  pitched  on  a  mountain,  or  sprinkled  by  the 
surges  of  the  ocean,  that  its  naked  walls  may  be  deco- 
rated with  simple  ornaments,  attractive  to  the  eye, 
favorable  to  taste,  and  instructive  to  the  mind;  the 
arrangements  may  be  such  as  to  secure  healthful  pos- 
tures and  exercise,  thorough  instruction  and  necessary 
variety,  well  attempered  light,  and  the  purest  air  that 
heaven  affords.  It  may  be  the  abode  of  harmony,  hap- 
piness, and  improvement.  The  best  of  friendships  may 
be  formed  there ;  and  the  path  which  conducts  to  it, 
however  stony  or  winding,  may  be  associated  in  many  a 
useful  mind  with  recollections  of  childhood,  and  the 
loftiest  conceptions  of  science,  of  man,  and  his  Creator. 

•  Timothy  Dwight. 


72 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


The  price  of  retaining  what  we  know  is  always  to 
seek  to  know  more.  We  preserve  our  learning  and 
mental  power  only  by  increasing  them. 


Henry  Darling. 


DEGRADING  THE  PUBLIC  SCHOOLS. 

There  is  a  tendency  in  modern  times  to  separate  the 
aesthetical  and  moral  from  other  forms  of  culture  in  the 
public  schools,  for  it  is  said  that  the  State  has  no  right 
to  furnish  the  children  of  the  State  with  any  training 
which  does  not  have  for  its  object  the  ability  to  live  suc- 
cessfully their  physical  lives.  They  would  limit  the 
culture  of  the  imagination  and  the  taste  to  those  fortu- 
nate ones  who  can  secure  it  for  themselves  by  private 
means ;  and  the  training  of  the  conscience  they  would 
leave  to  home  influences  and  to  the  teachings  of  the 
church.  Such  sentiments  have  a  tendency  to  degrade 
the  public  schools,  and  to  divert  them  from  pursuing 
the  very  ends  they  were  established  to  attain.  .  .  . 

Nothing  but  a  thorough  study  and  understanding  of 
the  philosophy  of  education  will  ever  preserve  our 
schools  from  that  degradation  which  must  come  if  the 
refinements  and  the  Christianity  of  culture  are  banished 
from  them.  Our  schools  have  no  meaning  except  as 
they  are  considered  to  be  institutions  for  the  formation 
of  character.  The  educators  of  the  State  and  all  the 
citizens  should  labor  together  to  find  a  way  by  which 
the  school  authorities  may  all  be  provided  with  skilled 
agents  to  assist  them  in  the  management  of  our  school 
affairs. 

J.  W.  Dickinson. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS,  73 

ORAL  INSTRUCTION. 

The  true  object  of  oral  instruction  I  conceive  to  be 
threefold,  —  training,  knowledge,  and  expression.  It  is 
possible  to  make  either  factor  too  prominent.  We  may- 
make  sharp  intellects,  that  possess  little  valuable  knowl- 
edge or  power  of  expression ;  we  may  impart  knowledge 
in  such  a  way  as  to  develop  in  our  pupils  little  power 
either  to  think  or  to  express ;  or  we  may  make  fluent 
talkers  and  writers,  characterized  by  weakness  and  igno- 
rance. Neither  of  these  is  the  highest  type  of  man. 
Perfection  requires  power,  wisdom,  and  speech.  It  is 
not  a  sufficient  recommendation,  then,  either  of  a  sub- 
ject of  study  or  a  mode  of  treatment,  that  it  disciplines 
the  mind.  It  is  not  enough  that  it  makes  the  pupil 
wise,  or  that  it  makes  him  fluent  of  speech.  The  true 
test  of  every  course  of  instruction,  and  for  every  lesson 
in  the  course, — and  this  is  emphatically  true  of  oral 
instruction,  which  fashions  the  mental  habits,  —  is  this : 
does  it  result  in  that  self-activity  of  the  pupils  that 
gives  them  additional  power  to  act;  does  the  subject- 
matter  stand  in  such  relation  to  human  interests,  and 
especially  to  the  interests  of  these  human  beings,  that 
the  resulting  knowledge  will  be  of  the  highest  practical 
value  to  them  ;  and  are  they  the  better  prepared  to  put 
themselves  in  communication  and  sympathy  with  their 
fellow-men }  Oral  instruction  that  will  not  bear  this 
test  should  not  be  allowed  to  waste  the  time  of  pupils. 

Larkin  Dunton. 


It  is  certain  that  in  the  education  which  was  given  at 
Sparta,    the    prime    purpose    was    to    train   Spartans. 


74  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

It  is  thus  that  in  every  state  the  purpose  should  be  to 
enkindle  the  spirit  of  citizenship. 

DUCLOS. 


ART   STUDY. 


We  are  often  asked  what  is  the  best  course  of  in- 
struction in  art .''  Our  only  reply  is,  a  thorough  knowl- 
edge of  the  rules  and  principles,  beginning  at  the 
foundation,  combined  with  such  practice  as  will  not  only 
give  to  the  scholar  skill  of  hand  and  accuracy  of  eye, 
but  also  make  these  rules  his  own.  First,  the  rules  of 
form  must  be  mastered,  then  of  light  and  shade,  and 
then  of  color.  Having  mastered  these  first  and  funda- 
mental principles  of  art,  the  scholar  is  prepared  to  learn 
their  application  in  composition  and  design,  from  the 
highest  department  of  art  to  the  lowest,  for  the  same 
rules  are  essential  to  every  branch  from  the  highest 
ideal  composition  to  the  simplest  design  for  the  artisan. 
An  experienced  teacher  will  soon  discover  in  what 
branch  of  art  the  scholar  will  most  excel,  and  direct  his 
studies  with  reference  to  the  talent  developed.  Suc- 
cess with  each  one  depends  no  less  upon  natural  ability 
than  upon  right  instruction. 

It  is  the  same  with  the  study  of  art  as  with  that  of 
mathematics.  If  the  scholar  is  not  well  grounded  in 
the  first  principles  of  arithmetic,  and  made  familiar  with 
numbers,  he  can  make  little  or  no  progress  in  algebra 
or  geometry ;  and  in  the  study  of  mathematics  no  prog- 
ress is  expected  unless  the  scholar  goes  on  regularly 
from  step  to  step.  When  the  same  importance  is 
attached  to  method  and  accuracy  in  teaching  the  first 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


75 


principles  of  art,  we  shall  have  artists  who  will  produce 
works  of  intrinsic  excellence.  Without  it,  they  can 
never  rise  above  mediocrity  either  as  historical  painters 
or  designers.  ^ m.  a.  dwight. 

RECENT  HISTORY. 

Not  to  carry  history  up  to  our  times  would,  to-day, 
be  a  national  crime ;  we  owe  it  to  our  heroes,  whether 
they  live  or  sleep  in  French  earth.  Not  to  progress  to 
the  present  would  make  all  study  of  the  past  almost 
useless.  History  is  to  give  an  ideally  practical  educa- 
tion for  the  present  and  for  the  future.  The  weapons 
of  Achilles  might  be  borrowed  by  any  one  from  the 
past ;  but  without  knowledge  of  the  developments  to 
the  present,  he  would  be-fighting  in  the  dark  with  them. 
Shall  it  be  left  to  accident  or  to  the  care  of  one  individ- 
ual to  make  up  what  is  wanting.?  Experience  has 
taught  us  how  many  are  able  to  do  so.  Why  shall  the 
rising  generation  learn  everything,  except  the  founda- 
tion on  which  it  stands  t  Perhaps,  because  recent  his- 
tory cannot  be  taught  objectively  enough.  But  will  it 
be  taught  more  objectively  in  the  light  of  faction  and  a 
party  press  }  If  the  teacher  has  disciplined  his  mind  as 
in  duty  bound,  objectively  to  represent  the  reality  of 
past  times,  he,  foremost  among  his  fellow-citizens,  will 
be  qualified  for  the  objective  comprehension  and  repre- 
sentation of  modern  ideas. 

G.   DlESTERWEG. 


DIFFICULT  WORK  NEEDED. 

Mental  training  is  dependent,  not  only  on  a  right 
method  of  activity,  but  on  the  degree  of  it.     I  am  not 


^6 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


sure  that  serious  mistakes  are  not  now  made  in  attempt- 
ing to  make  school-work  entirely  easy  as  well  as  absolute- 
ly delightful.  It  may  not  be  wise  to  compel  the  pupil  to 
grope  in  the  dark  for  results  that  a  small  amount  of 
well-directed  labor  would  easily  produce,  nor  to  add  that 
severity  to  his  labor  which  will  make  it  a  disagreeable 
task  for  him  to  perform,  but  it  must  not  be  forgotten 
by  those  who  are  engaged  in  training  the  human  mind, 
that  an  earnest  and  prolonged  activity  is  the  only  price 
that  will  purchase  a  vigorous  development.  A  con- 
sciousness of  such  activity,  and  of  the  good  results  asso- 
ciated with  it,  is  the  source  of  a  higher  joy  than  is  expe- 
rienced in  mere  amusement.  As  the  mind  acquires 
strength  only  by  an  exertion  of  its  own  power,  it  must 
not  be  relieved  from  hard  and  independent  labor  by  any 
attempt  on  the  part  of  the  teacher  to  take  the  burden 
of  work  upon  himself.  He  must  not  attempt  to  think 
and  speak  for  his  pupils,  nor  to  consider  his  work  is 
skilfully  done,  when  he  has  made  easy,  by  explanations, 
whatever  is  assigned  to  be  performed. 

J.  W.  Dickinson. 


CONTACT  WITH  PUPILS. 

The  old  Socratic  method  was  that  the  teacher  should 
instruct  the  pupil  everywhere  —  in  the  forum,  in  the 
market-place,  in  the  shop,  and  upon  the  street.  I  am 
quite  sure  that  it  would  be  well  if  this  Socratic  method 
was  not  regarded  as  obsolete,  and  if  these  impressions 
which  are  made  from  time  to  time  in  the  recitation 
room,  should  be  deepened  by  that  personal  contact 
which  every  true  instructor  may  and  ought  to  have  with 
his  pupils.     It  will  be  a  grand  thing  for  the  colleges  of 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  77 

this  State  if  we  can  educate  well,  not  simply  a  few  men 
in  every  class,  but  if  we  can  so  order  our  instruction 
that  the  average  standard  of  scholarship  in  all  classes 
will  be  elevated  ;  if  the  poor  scholar  shall  be  taught  by 
some  stimulant  to  do  better  work  and  go  out  from  our 
colleges  a  more  complete  and  perfectly  educated  man. 

Henry  Darung. 


A  HABIT  OF  WORK. 

In  order  to  give  women  the  habit  of  work,  they  must 
be  impressed  as  girls  with  the  fact  that  their  education 
is  not  finished  at  eighteen,  and  that  their  first  ba41-dress 
does  not  possess,  any  more  than  a  bachelor's  degree  for 
young  men,  the  power  of  giving  the  finishing  touch  to 
their  attainments. 

DUPANLOUP. 

PRACTICAL  AND  CLASSICAL  CULTURE. 

We  are  indebted  to  the  ancient  Greeks  as  much  for 
what  they  achieved  in  education  as  for  what  they  be- 
queathed to  our  language  and  literature.  The  close 
relationship  of  physical  stamina  to  character,  and  the 
necessity  of  perfecting  as  far  as  possible  the  individual 
man,  as  conceived  by  the  Greek  mind,  is  one  of  the 
corner-stones  of  educational  science.  Their  ideas  of 
manhood  developed  to  physical  and  intellectual  perfec- 
tion were  idealized  in  the  gods  of  Mount  Olympus,  and 
those  ideals  found  expression  through  the  plastic  arts 
for  the  instruction  of  all  mankind.  This  system  of  edu- 
cation, so  exacting  and  exclusive,  was  followed  by  that 
of  the  Romans,  which  was  its  counterpart  in  point  of 
practical  every-day  value.     The  Greeks  sought  a  harmo- 


78  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

aious  culture  that  would  make  men  godlike ;  the  Ro- 
mans aimed  at  a  severely  practical  training  which  would 
make  men  of  the  world,  as  orators,  warriors,  and  states- 
men. I  speak  particularly  of  these  two  systems,  as 
they  suggest  that  conflict  between  the  ideal  and  the 
practical  which  has  stamped  all  educational  history 
since  the  time  of  Christ.  The  claims  of  both  sides 
have  been  heard.  To  develop  the  individual,  and  at 
the  same  time  to  fit  him  to  be  useful,  has  been,  and 
must  be,  the  aim  of  every  thoughtful  educator. 

With  so  great  a  contribution  to  modern  education 
from  the  Pagan  world  we  can  hardly  expect  to  find  in 
the  Christian  system  of  the  Middle  Ages  anything  more 
valuable.  The  dominant  type  of  education  was  that  of 
the  monastery,  and  it  was  far  more  ecclesiastical  than 
practical.  The  castle  and  the  town  provided  some  in- 
struction, but  the  humanistic  teaching  of  the  schoolmen 
became  the  staple.  It  was  the  germ  of  modern  classical 
training.  Passing  on  to  the  theories  of  the  realists,  of 
whom  Comenius  was  a  leader,  we  find  them  to  be  in 
sharp  contrast  to  what  had  gone  before.  The  best 
teaching  of  to-day  obeys  many  of  their  rules.  To  follow 
the  order  of  nature,  to  teach  one  thing  at  a  time,  to 
avoid  compulsion,  to  learn  little  **  by  heart,"  to  study 
things  and  processes  first  and  then  the  rule, — these 
and  other  principles  come  to  us  as  a  legacy  from  the 
sixteenth  century.  s.  t.  dutton. 

Homer  is  the  master  to  whom  I  am  indebted  for 
whatever  merit  I  have,  if  indeed  I  have  any  at  all.  It 
is  difficult  to  attain  to  excellence  in  taste  without  a 
knowledge  of  the  Greek  and  Latin  languages. 

Diderot. 


EDUCATWJVAL  MOSAICS.  y^ 

It  is  not  enough  to  have  a  sound  mind ;  the  principal 
thing  is  to  make  a  good  use  of  it. 

Descartes. 


THE   POSITION   OF   HONOR. 

As  SO  much  depends  on  a  right  start  in  school  work, 
too  great  care  cannot  be  exercised  in  the  selection  of 
teachers  for  these  lower  grades.  New  teachers  should 
never  be  placed  here  to  experiment ;  but  successful 
experience  and  superior  merit  should  be  considered 
necessary  qualifications  of  a  teacher  for  the  lower  pri- 
maries. Then  let  the  ambition  of  these  teachers  be  not 
to  take  higher-grade  classes,  but  to  perfect  themselves 
as   primary   teachers.      There   is   no   more    honorable 

position.  A.W.EOSON. 

MAN'S   THREE   TEACHERS. 

It  is  indeed  true  that  one  of  the  great  secrets  of  the 
power  of  education,  in  its  application  to  large  numbers, 
is,  that  it  is  a  mutual  work.  Man  has  three  teachers,  — 
the  schoolmaster,  himself,  his  neighbor.  The  instruc- 
tions of  the  first  two  commence  together  ;  and  long 
after  the  functions  of  the  schoolmaster  have  been  dis- 
charged, the  duties  of  the  last  two  go  on  together. 
And  what  they  effect  is  vastly  more  important  than 
the  work  of  the  teacher,  if  estimated  by  the  amount  of 
knowledge  self-acquired,  or  caught  by  the  collision  or 
sympathy  of  other  minds,  compared  with  that  which 
is  directly  imparted  by  the  schoolmaster,  in  the  morning 
of  life.  In  fact,  what  we  learn  at  school  and  in  college 
is  but  the  foundation  of  the  great  work  of  self-instruc- 


8o  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

tion  and  mutual  instruction  with  which  the  real  educa- 
tion of  life  begins,  when  what  is  commonly  called  the 
education  is  finished.  The  daily  intercourse  of  culti- 
vated minds ;  the  emulous  exertions  of  the  fellow- 
votaries  of  knowledge  ;  controversy ;  the  inspiring  sym- 
pathy of  a  curious  and  intelligent  public,  —  unite  in 
putting  each  individual  intellect  to  the  strength  of  its 
capacity.  A  hint,  a  proposition,  an  inquiry,  proceeding 
from  one  mind,  awakens  new  trains  of  thought  in  a 
kindred  mind,  surveying  the  subject  from  other  points 
of  view,  and  with  other  habits  and  resources  of  illustra- 
tion ;  and  thus  truth  is  constantly  multiplied  and  propa- 
gated, by  the  mutual  action  and  reaction  of  the  thou- 
sands engaged  in  its  pursuit.  Hence  the  phenomena 
of  Periclean,  Augustan,  and  Mcdicean  ages,  and  golden 
eras  of  improvement ;  and  hence  the  education  of  each 
individual  mind,  instead  of  being  merely  the  addition 
of  one  to  the  well-instructed  and  well-informed  mem- 
bers of  the  community,  is  the  introduction  of  another 
member  into  the  great  family  of  intellects,  each  of 
which  is  a  point,  not  only  bright,  but  radiant,  and 
competent  to  throw  off  the  beams  of  light  and  truth  in 
every  direction.  Mechanical  forces,  from  the  moment 
they  are  put  in  action,  by  the  laws  of  matter  grow 
fainter  and  fainter,  till  they  are  exhausted.  With  each 
new  application  something  of  their  intensity  is  consumed. 
It  can  only  be  kept  up  by  a  continued  or  repeated  resort 
to  the  source  of  power.  Could  Archimedes  have  found 
his  place  to  stand  upon,  and  a  lever  with  which  he 
could  have  heaved  the  earth  from  its  orbit,  the  ut- 
most he  could  have  effected  would  have  been  to  make 
it  fall  a  dead  weight  into  the  sun.     Not  so  the  intel- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  gj 

lectual  energy.  If  wisely  exerted,  its  exercise,  instead 
of  exhausting,  increases  its  strength  ;  and  not  only  this, 
but,  as  it  moves  onward,  from  mind  to  mind,  it  awakens 
each  to  the  same  sympathetic,  self-propagating  action. 
The  circle  spreads  in  every  direction.  Diversity  of 
language  does  not  check  the  progress  of  the  great 
instructor ;  for  he  speaks  in  other  tongues,  and  gathers 
new  powers  from  the  response  of  other  schools  of  civili- 
zation. The  pathless  ocean  does  not  impede  ;  it  accel- 
erates his  progress.  Space  imposes  no  barrier,  time  no 
period,  to  his  efforts ;  and  ages  on  ages  after  the  poor 
clay  in  which  the  creative  intellect  was  enshrined  has 
mouldered  back  to  its  kindred  dust,  the  truths  which  it 
has  unfolded,  moral  or  intellectual,  are  holding  on  their 
pathway  of  light  and  glory,  awakening  other  minds  to 
the  same  heavenly  career. 

Edward  Everett. 


Life  is  the  education-time,  the  seed-time  for  eternity ; 
there  lies  its  whole  importance. 


Thomas  Erskine. 


THINKING  ALONE. 

The  student  must  embrace  solitude  as  a  bride.  He 
must  have  his  glees  and  his  glooms  alone.  His  own 
estimate  must  be  measure  enough,  his  own  praise  re- 
ward enough  for  him.  And  why  must  the  student  be 
solitary  and  silent  1  That  he  may  become  acquainted 
with  his  thoughts.  If  he  pines  in  a  lonely  place, 
hankering  for  the  crowd,  for  display,  he  is  not  in  the 
lonely  place ;  his  heart  is  in  the  market ;  he  does  not 
see ;  he  does  not  hear ;  he  does  not  think.     But  go. 


82  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

cherish  your  soul,  expel  companions,  set  your  habits  to 
a  life  of  solitude  ;  then  will  the  faculties  rise  fair  and 
full  within,  like  forest-trees  and  field-flowers;  you  will 
have  results  which,  when  you  meet  your  fellow-men, 
you  can  communicate,  and  they  will  gladly  receive.  Do 
not  go  into  solitude  only  that  you  may  presently  come 
into  public.  Such  solitude  denies  itself ;  is  public  and 
stale.  The  public  can  get  public  experience ;  but  they 
wish  the  scholar  to  replace  to  them  those  private,  sin- 
cere, divine  experiences,  of  which  they  have  been  de- 
frauded by  dwelling  in  the  streets.  It  is  the  noble, 
manlike,  just  thought,  which  is  the  superiority  de- 
manded of  you  ;  and  not  crowds,  but  solitude,  confers 
this  elevation.  Not  insulation  of  place,  but  independ- 
ence of  spirit,  is  essential ;  and  it  is  only  as  the  garden, 
the  cottage,  the  forest,  and  the  rock,  are  a  sort  of  me- 
chanical aids  to  this  that  they  are  of  value.  Think 
alone,  and  all  places  are  friendly  and  sacred.  The 
poets  who  have  lived  in  cities  have  been  hermits  still. 
Inspiration  makes  solitude  anywhere.  Pindar,  Raphael, 
Angelo,  Dryden,  De  Stael,  dwell  in  crowds.  It  may 
be  ;  but  the  instant  thought  comes,  the  crowd  grows 
dim  to  their  eye ;  their  eye  fixes  on  the  horizon  ;  —  on 
vacant  space  ;  —  they  forget  the  bystanders  ;  they  spurn 
personal  relations  ;  they  deal  with  abstractions,  with 
verities,  with  ideas.     They  are  alone  with  the  mind. 

Ralph  Waldo  Emerson. 

TENURE  OF   OFFICE. 

The  only  tenure  of  office  which  is  fit  for  a  teacher  is 
the  tenure  during  good  behavior  and  competency  ;  and 
this  is  the  only  tenure  which  will  secure  the  services  of 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


83 


competent  professors  in  colleges  and  universities.  The 
frequency  of  the  elections  of  teachers  is  a  very  bad 
feature  in  our  public  school  system.  Permanence  of 
tenure  is  necessary  to  make  the  position  of  a  teacher 
one  of  dignity  and  independence.  Young  men  of  vigor 
and  capacity  will  not  enter  a  profession  which  offers  no 
money  prizes,  unless  they  are  induced  by  its  stability 
and  peacefulness,  and  by  the  social  consideration  which 
attaches  to  it.  The  system  which  prevails  in  most  of 
our  large  cities  and  towns,  of  electing  the  teachers  in 
the  public  schools  at  least  as  often  as  once  a  year,  is 
inconsistent  with  this  dignity,  peacefulness,  and  consid- 
eration, unless  a  firmly  established  custom  of  re-electing 
incumbents  converts  the  constantly  recurring  elections 
into  mere  formalities. 

Charles  W.  Eliot, 

MORAL  PRINCIPLES. 

The  duty  of  instructing  the  young  includes  several 
elements,  the  first  and  also  the  chief  of  which  is,  that 
the  tender  mind  of  the  child  should  be  instructed  in 
piety ;  the  second,  that  he  love  and  learn  the  liberal 
arts ;  the  third,  that  he  be  taught  tact  in  the  conduct  of 
social  life ;  and  the  fourth,  that  from  his  earliest  age  he 
accustom  himself  to  good  behavior,  based  on  moral  prin- 
ciples.    Erasmus. 

NORMAL  SCHOOLS   A  SUCCESS. 

The  normal  school  has  on  the  whole  attained  a  noble 
success  in  the  United  States.  To  use  a  less  forcible  ex- 
pression for  this  fact  would  be  an  excessive  affectation 
of  a  misplaced  moderation.     Some  of  the  evidences  of 


84  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

this  success  have  been  indicated.  They  are  found  in  the 
multipUcation  of  the  schools,  in  the  demand  for  the  ser- 
vices of  the  teachers  educated  in  them.  They  are  also 
found  in  the  introduction  of  normal  departments  into 
colleges,  academies,  and  seminaries.  They  are  found  in 
the  confidence  with  which  the  public  regard  the  schools 
generally.  They  are  found  in  the  genuine  and  substan- 
tial progress  in  education  which  they  have  done  so  much 
to  promote.  To  ignore  this  great  fact,  much  more  to 
deny  it,  would  be  not  only  unpolitic,  but  unjust. 

Richard  Edwards. 

NO  DARK  CONTINENTS. 

How  should  the  promoters  of  culture  in  every  sphere 
and  under  every  condition  be  up  and  doing  !  There 
should  be  no  dark  continent  or  island  or  corner ;  there 
should  be  no  hiding-place  for  ignorance  and  its  myriads 
of  vassals  where  the  light  does  not  enter.  Clearly, 
would  you  make  the  best  of  an  individual,  or  a  people, 
or  a  race,  or  a  nation,  you  must  go  to  education  for  the 
secrets  of  your  success.  Theories  may  be  proclaimed 
in  the  valleys  and  from  the  mountain  tops,  the  armies  of 
the  world  may  be  marshalled  upon  its  plains,  the  navies 
of  the  world  may  plough  its  seas,  wealth  may  be  accumu- 
lated until  gold  gilds  the  palaces  of  the  rich,  commerce 
may  encircle  the  world,  traversing  the  seas  with  its  ves- 
sels, penetrating  the  mountains  and  spanning  the  rivers 
and  valleys  with  its  rails  ;  emperors  and  kings  and  presi- 
dents and  governors  may  proclaim  their  decrees  and 
laws,  and  all,  all  will  be  in  vain,  if  the  schoolmaster, 
fully  panoplied  and  fitly  furnished  for  the  right  educa- 
tion of  every  child,  is  not  abroad. 

John  Eaton. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


85 


You  are  well  aware  that  it  is  not  only  by  bodily  exer- 
cises, by  educational  institutions,  or  by  lessons  in  music 
that  our  youth  are  trained,  but  much  more  effectually 
by  public  examples. 


ESCHINES. 


INDIVIDUAL  POSSIBILITY  AND   HUMAN  AID. 

Wherever  there  is  a  human  mind  possessed  of  the 
common  faculties,  and  placed  in  a  body  organized  with 
the  common  senses,  there  is  an  active,  intelligent  being, 
competent,  with  the  proper  cultivation,  to  the  discovery 
of  the  highest  truths  in  the  natural,  the  social,  and  the 
political  world.  It  is  susceptible  of  demonstration,  if 
demonstration  were  necessary,  that  the  number  of  dis- 
tinguished men  which  are  to  benefit  and  adorn  the  soci- 
ety around  us  will  be  exactly  proportioned,  upon  the 
whole,  to  the  means  and  encouragements  to  improve- 
ment existing  in  the  community  ;  and  everything  which 
multiplies  these  means  and  encouragements  tends,  in 
the  same  proportion,  to  the  multiplication  of  inventions 
and  discoveries,  useful  and  honorable  to  man.  The 
mind,  although  it  does  not  stand  in  need  of  high  cul- 
ture, for  the  attainment  of  great  excellence  does  yet 
stand  in  need  of  some  culture,  and  cannot  thrive  with- 
out it.  When  it  is  once  awakened,  and  inspired  with  a 
consciousness  of  its  own  powers,  and  nourished  into 
vigor  by  the  intercourse  of  kindred  minds,  either 
through  books  or  living  converse,  it  does  not  disdain, 
but  it  needs  not,  further  extraneous  aid.  It  ceases  to 
be  a  pupil ;  it  sets  up  for  itself ;  it  becomes  a  master  of 
truth,  and   goes   fearlessly  onward,  sounding  its  way, 


S6  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

through  the  darkest  regions  of  investigation.  But  it  is 
almost  indispensable  that,  in  some  way  or  other,  the  ele- 
ments of  truth  should  be  imparted  from  kindred  minds  ; 
and  if  these  are  wholly  withheld,  the  intellect,  which,,  if 
properly  cultivated,  might  have  soared  with  Newton  to 
the  boundaries  of  the  comet's  orbit,  is  chained  down  to 
the  wants  and  imperfections  of  mere  physical  life,  uncon- 
scious of  its  own  capacities,  and  unable  to  fulfil  its  higher 
destiny. 

Contemplate,  at  this  season  of  the  year,  one  of  the 
magnificent  oak-trees  of  the  forest,  covered  with  thou- 
sands and  thousands  of  acorns.  There  is  not  one  of 
those  acorns  that  does  not  carry  within  itself  the  germ 
of  a  perfect  oak,  as  lofty  and  as  wide-spreading  as  the 
parent  stock ;  which  does  not  enfold  the  rudiments  of 
a  tree,  that  would  strike  its  roots  in  the  soil,  and  lift  its 
branches  towards  the  heavens,  and  brave  the  storms  of 
a  hundred  winters.  It  needs,  for  this,  but  a  handful  of 
soil  to  receive  the  acorn  as  it  falls,  a  little  moisture  to 
nourish  it,  and  protection  from  violence  till  the  root  is 
struck.  It  needs  but  these  ;  and  these  it  does  need,  and 
these  it  must  have  ;  and  for  want  of  them,  trifling  as 
they  seem,  there  is  not  one  out  of  a  thousand  of  those 
innumerable  acorns  which  is  destined  to  become  a  tree. 

It  is  for  want  of  the  little  that  human  means  must  add 
to  the  wonderful  capacity  for  improvement  born  in  man, 
that  by  far  the  greatest  part  of  the  intellect  innate  in 
our  race  perishes  undeveloped  and  unknown.  When  an 
acorn  falls  upon  an  unfavorable  spot,  and  decays  there, 
we  know  the  extent  of  the  loss,  —  it  is  that  of  a  tree, 
like  the  one  from  which  it  fell ;  but  when  the  intellect 
of  a  rational  being,  for  want  of  culture,  is  lost  to  the 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


87 


great  ends  for  which  it  was  created,  it  is  a  loss  which 
no  one  can  measure,  either  for  time  or  for  eternity. 

Edward  Everett. 


The  safe  path  to  excellence  and  success  in  every  call- 
ing is  that  of  appropriate  preliminary  education,  diligent 
application  to  learn  the  art,  and  assiduity  in  practising 
it. 

Edward  Everett. 

EDUCATED   PUBLIC  OPINION. 

With  reverence  for  self,  comes  respect  for  others ; 
with  knowledge  of  self,  comes  knowledge  of  the  self- 
same laws  that  govern  others,  and,  by  consequence,  a 
knowledge  of,  and  respect  for,  the  rights  of  others, 
which  attained,  the  advancement  of  society  in  the  paths 
of  peace  and  prosperity  is  made  certain.  Liberty  and 
order  in  all  their  beauty  and  perfect  harmony,  are  secure 
in  citadels  unassailable ;  for  a  true  and  intelligent  pub- 
lic opinion,  with  its  wide-mouthed  cannon  and  its  shin- 
ing bayonets,  surrounds  and  guards  them  on  every  side ; 
while  in  turn,  it  receives  from  them,  as  from  an  unfail- 
ing fountain,  the  waters  which  feed  and  purify  it. 

George  F.  Edmunds. 


CULTIVATED  MANNERS. 
Manners  are  the  happy  way  of  doing  things ;  each 
one  a  stroke  of  genius  or  of  love,  now  repeated  and 
hardened  into  usage,  they  form  at  last  a  rich  varnish, 
with  which  the  routine  of  life  is  washed,  and  its  details 
adorned.     If  they  are  superficial,  so  are  the  dewdrops 


^'^   OF  THT!*^^ 


88  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

which  give  such  a  depth  to  the  morning  meadows. 
Manners  are  very  communicable  ;  men  catch  them  from 
each  other.  Consuelo,  in  the  romance,  boasts  of  the  les- 
sons she  had  given  the  nobles  in  manners  on  the  stage  and 
in  real  life.  Talma  taught  Napoleon  the  art  of  behavior. 
Genius  invents  fine  manners,  which  the  baron  and  the 
baroness  copy  very  fast,  and,  by  the  advantage  of  a 
palace,  better  the  instruction.  They  stereotype  the  les- 
son they  have  learned  into  a  mode.  The  power  of  man- 
ner is  incessant  —  an  element  as  unconcealable  as  fire. 
The  nobility  cannot  in  any  country  be  disguised,  and  no 
more  in  a  republic  or  a  democracy  than  in  a  kingdom. 
No  man  can  resist  their  influence.  There  are  certain 
manners  which  are  learned  in  good  society,  of  that  force, 
that,  if  a  person  have  them,  he  or  she  must  be  consid- 
ered and  is  everywhere  welcome,  though  without  beauty, 
or  wealth,  or  genius.  Give  a  boy  address  and  accom- 
plishments, and  you  give  him  the  mastery  of  palaces 
and  fortunes  where  he  goes  ;  he  has  not  the  trouble  of 
earning  or  owning  them ;  they  solicit  him  to  enter  and 
possess. 

Ralph  Waldo  Emerson. 


THE   GREEK   LANGUAGE. 

The  history  of  the  Greek  language  is  one  of  the  most 
interesting  subjects  of  literary  investigation.  Men  of 
the  clearest  judgment  unite  with  enthusiastic  scholars 
in  declaring  it  to  be  unrivalled  for  richness,  copiousness, 
and  strength.  The  old  Ionic  form,  with  its  sounding 
combinations  of  vowels,  gives  a  beautiful  and  liquid 
flow,  while  its  happy  descriptive  and  imitative  epithets 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  89 

impart  the  liveliness  of  painting  itself  to  the  stately 
hexameter.  The  Doric  is  sweet  and  simple  in  pastoral 
poetry,  but  rises  to  a  severe  grandeur  in  the  lyrics  of 
Pindar,  and  the  choral  songs  of  the  tragedians.  The 
Attic  is  the  language  of  dramatic  dialogue,  history, 
logic,  and  philosophy  ;  the  language  of  the  high-wrought, 
impassioned  argument  of  Demosthenes,  the  smooth  elo- 
quence of  Isocrates,  the  refined  subtil ty  of  Lysias  ;  the 
language  of  the  wire-drawn  reasonings  of  Socrates,  and 
the  stern  truths  of  Thucydides.  Now,  whence  came 
this  curiously  contrived  instrument  of  human  thought  t 
What  strange  coincidence  of  happy  influences  wrought 
out  of  the  simple  elements  of  sound  its  extraordinary 
variety  of  expressive  powers  I  What  finely  organized 
people  first  gave  utterance  to  its  immortal  harmonies  t 
From  what  region,  blessed  with  Heaven's  selectest  in- 
fluence, came  they  to  the  shores  of  Greece }  These  are 
questions  which  have  exercised  the  wits  of  the  acutest 
men,  and  the  lea^rning  of  the  ablest  scholars,  but  with 
no  very  satisfactory  result. 

C.  C.  Felton. 


READ   THE  ORIGINALS. 

When  youth  are  told  that  the  great  men  whose  lives 
and  actions  they  read  in  history  spoke  two  of  the  best 
languages  that  ever  were,  the  most  expressive,  copious, 
beautiful ;  and  that  the  finest  writings,  the  most  correct 
compositions,  the  most  perfect  productions  of  human 
wit  and  wisdom,  are  in  those  languages,  which  have  en- 
dured for  ages,  and  will  endure  while  there  are  men ; 
that  no  translation  can  do   them   justice,  or  give  the 


90  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

pleasure  found  in  reading  the  originals ;  that  those  orig- 
inal languages  contain  all  science ;  that  one  of  them  is 
become  almost  universal,  being  the  language  of  learned 
men  in  all  countries ;  and  that  to  understand  them  is  a 
distinguishing  ornament ;  they  may  be  thereby  made 
desirous  of  learning  those  languages,  and  their  industry 
sharpened  in  the  acquisition  of  them.  All  intended  for 
divinity  should  be  taught  the  Latin  and  Greek ;  for 
physics,  the  Latin,  Greek,  and  French ;  for  law,  the 
Latin  and  French ;  merchants,  the  French,  German, 
and  Spanish  ;  and,  though  all  should  not  be  compelled  to 
learn  Latin,  Greek,  or  the  modern  foreign  languages, 
yet  none  that  have  an  ardent  desire  to  learn  them  should 
be  refused ;  their  English,  arithmetic,  and  other  studies 
absolutely  necessary,  not  being  neglected. 

Bei^jamin  Franklin. 

This  whole  earth  can  be  but  a  place  of  tuition  till  it 
becomes  either  a  depopulated  ruin  or  an  elysium  of  per- 
fect and  happy  beings. 

John  Foster. 

WILL  IT   PAY? 

Hardly  a  week  passes  that  fathers  and  mothers  and 
teachers  do  not  ask  me  whether  it  will  pay  to  send  some 
bright,  ambitious  girl  to  college.  There  is  but  one 
answer :  If  civilization  pays,  if  education  is  not  a  mis- 
take, if  hearts  and  brains  and  souls  are  more  than  the 
dress  they  wear,  then,  by  every  interest  dear  to  a  Chris- 
tian republic,  by  all  the  hope  we  have  of  building  finer 
characters  than  former  generations  have  produced,  give 
the  girls  the  widest  and  the  highest  and  the  deepest 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  OI 

education  we  have  dreamed  of,  and  then  regret  that  it 
is  not  better,  broader,  and  deeper. 

France  never  needed  educated  mothers  as  America 
needs  them  to-day,  and  France  nor  Europe  ever  real- 
ized the  glory  of  civilization  which  will  crown  our 
Republic  when  all  the  homes,  schoolrooms,  and  churches 
are  filled  with  women  as  intelligent  as  they  are  loving, 
as  broad-minded  as  they  are  large-hearted,  as  strong  in 
body  and  mind  as  they  have  proved  themselves  generous 
in  heart.  The  civilization  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  in 
America,  therefore,  depends  upon  the  education  — 
physical,  mental,  moral,  and  social  —  of  the  woraen  for 
the  next  fifty  years. 

Miss  Alice  E.  Freeman. 


NEGLECTING  THE   MIND. 

It  is  an  extraordinary  thing  that  man,  with  a  mind  so 
wonderful  that  there  is  nothing  to  compare  with  it  else- 
where in  the  known  creation,  should  leave  it  to  run  wild  in 
respect  of  its  highest  elements  and  qualities.  He  has  a 
power  of  comparison  and  judgment,  by  which  his  final 
resolves,  and  all  those  acts  of  his  material  system  which 
distinguish  him  from  the  brutes,  are  guided;  shall  he 
omit  to  educate  and  improve  them  when  education  can 
do  so  much  }  Is  it  towards  the  very  principles  and 
privileges  that  distinguish  him  above  other  creatures, 
he  should  feel  indifference }  Because  the  education  is 
internal,  it  is  not  the  less  needful ;  nor  is  it  the  more 
the  duty  of  a  man  that  he  should  cause  his  child  to  be 
taught  than  that  he  should  teach  himself.  Indolence 
may  tempt  him  to  neglect  the  self-examination  and  ex- 
perience which  form    his    school,  and  weariness  may 


92 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


induce  the  evasion  of  the  necessary  practices  ;  but 
surely  a  thought  of  the  prize  should  suffice  to  stimulate 
him  to  the  requisite  exertion ;  and  to  those  who  reflect 
upon  the  many  hours  and  days  devoted  by  a  lover  of 
sweet  sounds  to  gain  a  moderate  facility  upon  a  mere 
mechanical  instrument,  it  ought  to  bring  a  correcting 
blush  of  shame,  if  they  feel  convicted  of  neglecting  the 
beautiful  living  instrument  wherein  play  all  the  powers 
of  the  mind. 

Michael  Faraday. 


GEOGRAPHY,   PHYSICAL  AND  POLITICAL. 

Connect  from  the  first.  Physical  geography  with  that 
which  is  called  Political.  By  the  former  of  course  is 
meant  the  geography  of  the  world  as  it  would  have  been 
if  man  had  never  lived  on  it  ;  by  the  latter  is  meant  all 
those  facts  which  are  the  result  of  man's  residence  on 
the  earth.  But  the  second  class  of  facts  is  nearly  al- 
ways to  be  accounted  for  by  a  study  of  the  first.  The 
earth  is  wonderfully  designed  for  human  habitation.  It 
is  our  granary,  our  vineyard,  our  lordly  pleasure-house. 
In  some  parts  Nature  is  bountiful,  in  others  penurious  ; 
over  some  she  sheds  beauty,  in  others  she  offers  ma- 
terial prosperity  ;  at  one  place  she  hides  treasure,  at 
another  she  spreads  it  on  the  surface.  In  some  places 
she  invites  neighboring  peoples  to  intercourse,  in  others 
she  erects  impenetrable  barriers  between  them  ;  in  some 
she  lures  the  inhabitants  to  peaceful,  prosaic  industry, 
in  others  terrifies  them  by  displays  of  awful  and  inex- 
plicable forces.  And  even  of  those  regions  which  she 
seems  not  to  have  designed  for  our  use  —  the  torrid 
desert,  the  lonely  rocky  mountains,  and  the  mysterious 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  93 

ice-bound  regions  of  the  poles  —  may  we  not  truly  say, 
that  they  too  are  part  of  the  bountiful  provision  she  has 
made  for  our  many-sided  wants  ?  For  they  impress  and 
exalt  our  imagination,  they  minister  to  our  sense  of 
beauty,  and  yet  at  the  same  time  they  humble  our  pride, 
and  make  us  feel  that  there  is  something  more  in  the 
world  than  is  immediately  and  easily  intelligible  to  us. 
They  give  us,  in  short,  a  sense  of  the  mystery,  the 
vastness,  and  the  sumptuousness  of  the  world,  which  is 
very  necessary  for  a  right  estimate  of  our  own  true 
place  in  it. 

And  with  such  considerations  before  us  we  see  how 
curiously  the  mere  physical  conditions  in  which  man  is 
placed  determine  his  habits,  the  life  he  leads,  the  kind 
of  societies  he  forms,  the  character  and  the  history  of 
different  races. 

J,  G.  Fitch. 

Unity  and  variety,  as  perfectly  united  as  possible,  are 
what  education  should  strive  after. 

Froebel. 


OPEN  EYES. 


Classical  philosophy,  classical  history  and  literature, 
taking,  as  they  do,  no  hold  upon  the  living  hearts  and 
imagination  of  men  in  this  modern  age,  leave  their 
working  intelligence  a  prey  to  wild  imaginations,  and 
make  them  incapable  of  really  understanding  the  world 
in  which  they  live.  If  the  clergy  knew  as  much  of  the 
history  of  England  and  Scotland  as  they  know  about 
Greece  and  Rome,  if  they  had  ever  been  taught  to  open 
their  eyes  and  see  what  is  actually  round  them  instead 


94 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


of  groping  among  books  to  find  what  men  did  or 
thought  at  Alexandria  or  Constantinople  fifteen  hundred 
years  ago,  they  would  grapple  more  effectively  with  the 
moral  pestilence  which  is  poisoning  all  the  air. 

J.  A.  Froude. 

THE  TEACHER'S  MONUMENT. 
Let  this  amongst  other  motives  make  schoolmasters 
careful  in  their  place,  that  the  eminencies  of  their  schol- 
ars have  commended  the  memories  of  their  schoolnias- 
ters  to  posterity,  who  otherwise  in  obscurity .  had 
altogether  been  forgotten.  Who  had  ever  heard  of  R. 
Bond  in  Lancashire,  but  for  the  breeding  of  learned 
Ascham,  his  scholar;  or  of  Hartgrave  in  Brundley 
school,  in  the  same  county,  but  because  he  was  the  first 
did  teach  worthy  Dr.  Whittaker  }  Nor  do  I  honor  the 
memory  of  Mulcaster  for  anything  so  much  as  for  his 
scholar,  that  gulf  of  learning.  Bishop  Andrews.  This 
made  the  Athenians,  the  day  before  the  great  feast  of 
Theseus  their  founder,  to  sacrifice  a  ram  to  the  memory 
of  Conidas  his  schoolmaster  that  first  instructed  him. 

Thomas  Fuller. 

When  there  is  no  recreation  or  business  for  thee 
abroad,  thou  may'st  then  have  a  company  of  honest  old 
fellows  in  leathern  jackets,  in  thy  study,  which  may  find 
thee  excellent  divertisement  at  home. 

Thomas  Fuller. 


FACTS  AND  PRINCIPLES. 


Detached  facts  on  miscellaneous  subjects,  as  they  are 
taught  at  a  modern  school,  are  like  separate  letters  of 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  ^^ 

endless  alphabets.  You  may  load  the  mechanical  mem- 
ory with  them  till  it  becomes  a  marvel  of  retentiveness. 
Your  young  prodigy  may  amaze  examiners  and  delight 
inspectors.  His  achievements  may  be  emblazoned  in 
blue-books,  and  furnish  matter  for  flattering  reports  on 
the  excellence  of  our  educational  system ;  and  all  this 
while  you  have  been  feeding  him  with  chips  of  granite. 
But  arrange  your  letters  into  words,  and  each  becomes 
a  thought,  a  symbol  waking  in  the  mind  an  image  of  a 
real  thing.  Group  your  words  into  sentences,  and 
thought  is  married  to  thought  and  produces  other 
thoughts,  and  the  chips  of  granite  become  soft  bread, 
wholesome,  nutritious,  and  invigorating.  Teach  your 
boys  subjects  which  they  can  only  remember  mechani- 
cally, and  you  teach  them  nothing  which  it  is  worth 
their  while  to  know.  Teach  them  facts  and  principles 
which  they  can  apply  and  use  in  the  work  of  their  lives ; 
and  if  the  object  be  to  give  your  clever  working  lads  a 
chance  of  rising  to  become  presidents  of  the  United 
States,  or  millionnaires  with  palaces  and  powdered  foot- 
men, the  ascent  into  those  blessed  conditions  will  be 
easier  and  healthier  along  the  track  of  an  instructed  in- 
dustry, than  by  the  paths  which  the  most  keenly  sharp- 
ened wits  would  be  apt  to  choose  for  themselves. 

J.  A.  Froude. 


THE  LIFE  SCIENCES. 


The  sciences,  of  which  I  notice  a  great  and  general 
ignorance  even  among  our  best  public  school  educated 
men, — that  of  the  air,  the  earth,  the  water,  —  touch  us 
at  all  points,  every  day,  every  hour,  every  where  —  they 


96  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

make  up  life.  And  it  is  difficult  to  make  such  adult 
minds  comprehend  simple  explanations,  which  if  ad- 
dressed to  young  people  in  school  or  in  the  shop,  will  be 
both  intelligible,  interesting,  and  profitable.  I  never  yet 
found  a  boy  so  young  as  not  to  be  able  to  understand 
by  a  simple  explanation  and  to  enjoy  the  point  of  an  ex- 
periment. I  find  the  grown-up  minds  coming  back  to 
me  with  the  same  questions  over  and  over  again.  They 
are  not  prepared  to  receive  these  notions.  They  need 
the  A  B  C  of  the  subjects.  I  could  teach  a  little  boy  of 
eleven  years  old,  of  ordinary  intelligence,  all  those 
things  in  mechanics,  hydrostatics,  hydrauhcs,  optics, 
which  are  usually  taught  at  a  much  later  period.  These 
subjects,  and  chemistry  and  botany,  should  receive  at- 
tention in  apposite  ways  and  times  in  school. 

Michael  Faraday. 


Every  man,  unless  he  believes  that  he  fell  from  the 
clouds,  or  that  the  beginning  of  the  world  dates  at  the 
date  of  his  own  birth,  should  take  pains  to  become  ac- 
quainted with  what  has  taken  place  at  other  times  and 
in  other  countries. 

Frederick  the  Great. 

CULTIVATE  THE  FANCY. 

Acquaint  thyself  with  reading  poets,  for  there  Fancy 
is  on  her  throne  ;  and  in  time,  the  sparks  of  the  author's 
wit  will  eatch  hold  on  the  reader,  and  inflame  him  with 
love,  liking,  and  desire  of  imitation.  I  confess  there  is 
more  required  to  teach  one  to  write  than  to  see  a  copy ; . 
however,  there  is  a  secret  force  of  fascination  in  reading 
poems  to  raise  and  provoke  the  fancy.  .  .  .   Acquaint  thy- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  97 

self  by  degrees  with  hard  and  knotty  studies,  as  school 
divinity,  which  will  clog  thy  over-nimble  fancy.  True, 
at  the  first  it  will  be  as  welcome  to  thee  as  a  prison,  and 
their  very  solutions  will  seem  knots  unto  thee.  But 
take  not  too  much  at  once,  lest  thy  brain  turn  edge. 
Taste  it  first  as  a  potion  for  physic,  and  by  degrees  thou 
shalt  drink  it  as  beer,  for  thirst ;  practice  will  make  it 
pleasant.  Mathematics  are  also  good  for  this  purpose. 
If  beginning  to  make  a  conclusion,  thou  must  make  an 
end,  lest  thou  lose  thy  pains  that  are  past,  and  must 
proceed  seriously  and  exactly. 

Thomas  Fuller. 


Instruction  does  not  prevent  waste  of  time  or  mis- 
takes ;  and  mistakes  themselves  are  often  the  best 
teachers  of  all. 

J.  A.  Froude. 

MATHEMATICAL  SCIENCES. 

We  return  finally  to  the  fundamental  reason  for  teach- 
ing mathematics  ^  at  all  either  to  boys  or  men.  Is  it 
because  the  doctrines  of  number  and  of  magnitude  are 
in  themselves  so  valuable,  or  stand  in  any  visible  relation 
to  the  subjects  with  which  we  have  to  deal  most  in  after 
life }  Assuredly  not.  But  it  is  because  a  certain  kind 
of  mental  exercise,  of  unquestioned  service  in  connection 
with  all  conceivable  subjects  of  thought,  is  best  to  be 
had  in  the  domain  of  mathematics.  Because  in  that  high 
and  serene  region  there  is  no  party  spirit,  no  personal 
controversy,  no  compromise,  no  balancing  of  probabili- 
ties, no  painful  misgiving,  lest  what  seems  true  to-day 


gS  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

may  prove  to  be  false  to-morrow.  Here,  at  least,  the 
student  moves  from  step  to  step,  from  premise  to  in- 
ference, from  the  known  to  the  hitherto  unknown,  from 
antecedent  to  consequent,  with  a  firm  and  assured  tread  ; 
knowing  well  that  he  is  in  the  presence  of  the  highest 
certitude  of  which  the  human  intelligence  is  capable, 
and  that  these  are  the  methods  by  which  approximate 
certitude  is  attainable  in  other  departments  of  knowl- 
edge. No  doubt  your  mere  mathematician,  if  there  be 
such  a  person,  —  he  who  expects  to  find  all  the  truth  in 
the  world  formulated  and  demonstrable  in  the  same  way 
as  the  truths  of  mathematics, — is  a  poor  creature,  or,  to 
say  the  least,  a  very  incomplete  scholar.  But  he  who 
has  received  no  mathematical  training,  who  has  never 
had  that  side  of  his  mind  trained  which  deals  with  neces- 
sary truth,  and  with  the  rigorous,  pitiless  logic  by  which 
conclusions  about  circles  and  angles  and  numbers  are 
arrived  at,  is  more  incomplete  still ;  he  is  like  one  who 
lacks  a  sense;  for  him  "wisdom  at  one  entrance"  is 
"quite  shut  out,"  he  is  destitute  of  one  of  the  chief 
instruments  by  which  knowledge  is  attained. 

Nor  is  it  enough  to  regard  mathematical  science  only 
in  its  far-reaching  applications  to  such  other  subjects  as 
astronomy  and  physics,  or  even  in  its  indirect  efficacy  in 
strengthening  the  faculty  of  ratiocination  in  him  who 
studies  it.  There  is  something  surely  in  the  beauty  of 
the  truths  themselves.  We  are  the  richer — even  though 
we  look  at  them  for  their  own  sakes  merely  —  for  dis- 
cerning the  subtle  harmonies  and  affinities  of  number 
and  of  magnitude,  and  the  wonderful  way  in  which, 
out  of  a  few  simple  postulates  and  germinating  truths, 
the   mind   of   man  can   gradually  unfold  a  whol-e   sys- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  99 

tern  of  new  and  beautiful  theorems,  expanding  into 
infinite  and  unexpected  uses  and  applications.  And  as 
we  look  on  them  we  are  fain  to  say,  as  the  brother  in 
Comus  said  of  a  kind  of  philosophy  which  was  novel  to 
him,  and  which,  perhaps,  he  had  hitherto  despised,  that 
it  is  indeed 

**Not  harsh  or  crabbed,  as  dull  fools  suppose, 
But  musical  as  is  Apollo's  lute, 
And  a  perpetual  feast  of  nectared  sweets 
Where  no  crude  surfeit  reigns." 

J.  G.  Fitch. 


UNITY   IN  VARIETY. 

All  education  must  be  according  to  nature.  But 
since  the  first  law  of  nature  generally,  and  of  human 
development  especially,  is  unity  in  variety,  therefore 
education  must  steadily  have  regard  to  this  rule ;  and 
must  seek  to  develop  variety  out  of  unity ;  so  that  a 
spherical  figure  is  the  image  of  this  requirement.  .  .  . 
True  human  training  requires  that  man  should  be  devel- 
oped from  within  himself,  a  unity  of  spirit  and  feeling 
cultivated,  and  educated  into  an  independent  and  all- 
sided  expression  of  the  unity  of  his  mind  and  feelings. 

Froebel. 


No  important  result  can  be  attained  with  regard  to 
the  accomplishment  of  any  object  which  affects  the 
temporal  or  eternal  well-being  of  our  species,  without 
enlisting  an  entire  devotedness  to  it,  of  intelligence, 
zeal,  fidelity,  industry,  integrity,  and  practical  exertion. 

Thomas  H.  Gallaudet. 


ICX)  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

DANGEROUS   AMBITION. 

Amongst  the  feelings  which  may  animate  a  nation, 
there  is  one,  the  absence  of  which  would  be  much  to  be 
deplored  if  it  existed  not,  but  which  we  should  take  care 
neither  to  flatter  nor  excite  where  we  find  it  in  exercise, 
—  the  sentiment  of  ambition.  I  honor  aspiring  spirits. 
Much  is  to  be  expected  from  them,  provided  they  cannot 
easily  attempt  all  they  desire  to  accomplish.  And  as,  in 
our  days,  of  all  ambitions  the  most  ardent,  if  not  the 
most  apparent,  especially  amongst  the  industrial  classes, 
is  the  ambition  of  intelligence,  from  which  they  look  for 
the  gratifications  of  self-love  and  the  means  of  fortune 
— it  is  that,  above  all  others,  the  development  of  which, 
while  we  treat  it  with  indulgence,  we  should  watch  over 
and  direct  with  unceasing  care.  I  know  nothing  at 
present  more  injurious  to  society,  or  more  hurtful  to  the 
people  themselves,  than  the  small  amount  of  ill-directed 
popular  erudition,  and  the  vague,  incoherent,  and  false, 
although,  at  the  same  time,  active  and  powerful,  ideas 
with  which  it  fills  their  heads. 

GUIZOT. 


REVERENCE   FOR  BOYS. 

I  FEEL  a  profounder  reverence  for  a  boy  than  for  a 
man.  I  never  meet  a  ragged  boy  of  the  street,  without 
feeling  that  I  may  owe  him  a  salute,  for  I  know  not 
what  possibilities  may  be  buttoned  up  under  his  shabby 
coat.  When  I  meet  you  in  the  full  flush  of  mature  life, 
I  see  nearly  all  there  is  of  you  ;  but  among  the  boys  are 
the  great  men  of  the  future  ;  the  heroes  of  the  next  gen- 
eration;  the  philosophers,  the   statesmen,  the   philan- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  lOi 

thropists,  the  great  reformers  and  moulders  of  the  next 
age.  Therefore,  I  say,  there  is  a  peculiar  charm  to  me 
in  the  exhibitions  of  young  people  engaged  in  the  busi- 
ness of  education. 

James  A,  Garfield. 


BABY  SCIENTISTS. 


All  the  sciences  begin  in  the  cradle.  In  the  simplest 
form  observed  by  the  child,  lies  the  beginning  of  both 
natural  history  and  geometry.  In  its  first  conscious 
exercise  of  motion  and  force,  begin  natural  philosophy 
and  mechanics.  In  the  watched  play  of  a  sunbeam,  is 
read  the  first  lesson  in  optics  and  astronomy.  With  the 
counted  fingers  begins  elementary  arithmetic.  The  first 
expeditions  of  the  tiny  pattering  feet  invade  the  realms 
of  geography  and  geology,  and  the  busy  play  of  childish 
hands  explore  half  a  score  of  sciences.  Even  the  meta- 
physical sciences  are  begun  here.  In  the  recognized 
word  of  endearment,  or  the  familiarized  call  to  food, 
both  language  and  logic  has  a  place ;  and  mental  philos- 
ophy begins  with  the  first  perception  of  thought  or  feel- 
ing read  by  the  child  in  the  mother's  face.  No  pupil 
enters  our  public  schools  who  has  not  already  begun  the 
study  of  every  branch  of  knowledge,  and  acquired  hun- 
dreds of  facts  in  every  one  of  the  sciences.  Every  sci- 
ence, in  its  infancy,  began  with  just  such  facts  as  these, 
—  simple  facts  of  sense, — and  centuries  of  observation 
and  slow  accumulation  passed  by,  before  the  scientific 
formula  was  reached,  and  the  underlying  philosophies 
emerged  to  view. 

John  M.  Gregory. 


102  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

ENGLISH   LITERATURE. 

One  of  the  principal  advantages  of  the  class-room 
study  of  English  literature  is  that  it  familiarizes  the 
student  with  suitable  models  for  composition  and  places 
before  him  lofty,  yet  not  altogether  unattainable,  ideals. 
In  the  choice  of  authors  to  be  read,  and  in  our  methods 
of  study,  this  end  should  be  distinctly  borne  in  mind. 
Meanwhile,  from  advanced  students,  I  would  require 
brief  dissertations  on  special  points  illustrative  of  the 
work  in  hand  or  cognate  themes.  But  I  should  take 
especial  pains  not  to  make  the  authors  in  hand  a  weari- 
ness or  a  bore  to  my  pupils,  passing  pretty  rapidly  from 
one  author  to  another.  To  know  a  little  about  an 
author  and  love  him,  is  a  great  deal  better,  in  the  long 
run,  than  to  know  a  good  deal  about  that  author  and 
detest  him.  From  the  modern  and  more  easily  appre- 
hended specimens  of  English  and  American  literature, 
I  should  work  back  to  those  which  are  more  obscure 
and  more  difficult.  My  object  throughout  would  be  to 
cultivate  an  intelligent  appreciation  —  a  positive  love  — 
for  those  treasures  of  genius,  those  masterpieces  of 
literary  art,  which  are  embodied  in  our  mother  tongue ; 
such  a  love  as  would  be  a  delight,  a  sustaining,  comfort- 
ing, restraining  influence  throughout  life.  It  is,  as  I 
understand  it,  the  functfon  of  the  teacher  of  English 
literature,  in  our  acadamies  and  high  schools,  to  do  for 
those  devoid  of  home  culture  what  is  done  spontane- 
ously, and  without  care  or  pains,  in  those  abodes  of 
refinement  where  the  names,  the  works  of  those 

"  Dead  but  accepted  sovereigns  who  still  rule 
Our  spirits  from  their  urns  " 

are  from  childhood  as  household  words. 

J.  H.  GiLMORE. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  103 


THE   STUDY   OF  PSYCHOLOGY. 

Next,  I  mention  as  the  subject  for  university  study, 
Psychology,  the  nature  of  man's  soul,  the  characteris- 
tics of  his  mental  and  moral  activity.  This  science  has 
lately  made  great  progress  ;  it  has  improved  its  methods 
and  enlarged  its  scope.  Those  who  are  devoted  to  it 
appreciate  the  inherited  experiences  of  the  human  race, 
and  are  not  indifferent  to  the  lessons  which  may  pro- 
ceed from  intuition  and  introspection ;  they  study  all 
the  manifestations  of  intellectual  life ;  but,  on  the  other 
hand,  they  are  not  afraid  to  inquire,  and  they  know  how 
to  inquire,  into  the  physical  conditions  under  which  the 
mind  works :  they  watch  the  spontaneous,  unconven- 
tional actions  of  children ;  they  investigate  the  laws  of 
heredity ;  they  examine  with  curious  gaze  the  eccen- 
tricities of  genius;  and  with  discerning,  often  with 
remedial  eye,  the  alienation  of  human  powers ;  and  they 
believe  that  by  a  combination  of  these  and  other  meth- 
ods of  research,  among  which  experiment  has  its  legiti- 
mate place,  the  conduct  of  the  human  understanding 
and  the  laws  of  progressive  morality  will  be  better  un- 
derstood, so  that  more  wholesome  methods  of  education 
will  be  employed  in  schools  of  every  grade.  They  ac- 
knowledge the  superiority  of  the  soul  to  the  body,  and 
they  stand  in  awe  before  the  mysteries  which  are  as 
impenetrable  to  modern  investigators  as  they  were  to 
Leibnitz  and  Spinosa,  to  Abelard  and  Aquinas,  to  Aris- 
totle and  Plato,  the  mystery  of  man's  conscious  respon- 
sibility, his  intimations  of  immortality,  his  relations  to 
the  Infinite. 

Daniel  C.  Oilman. 


104  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

THE  TEACHER  A   STUDENT. 

It  is  the  business  of  a  university  to  advance  knowl- 
edge ;  every  professor  must  be  a  student.  No  history 
is  so  remote  that  it  may  be  neglected ;  no  law  of  mathe- 
matics is  so  hidden  that  it  may  not  be  sought  out ;  no 
problem  in  respect  to  physics  is  so  difficult  that  it  must 
be  shunned.  No  love  of  ease,  no  dread  of  labor,  no 
fear  of  consequences,  no  desire  for  wealth,  will  deter  a 
band  of  well-chosen  professors  from  uniting  their  forces 
in  the  prosecution  of  study.  Rather  let  me  say  that 
there  are  heroes  and  martyrs,  prophets  and  apostles  of 
learning,  as  there  are  of  religion.  To  the  claims  of 
duty,  to  the  responsibilities  of  station,  to  the  voices  of 
enlightened  conscience,  such  men  respond,  and  they 
throw  their  hearts  into  their  work  with  as  much  devo- 
tion, and  as  little  selfishness,  as  it  is  possible  for  human 
nature  to  exhibit.  By  their  labors  knowledge  has  been 
accumulated,  intellectual  capital  has  been  acquired.  In 
these  processes  of  investigation  the  leading  universities 
of  the  world  are  engaged. 

This  is  what  laboratories,  museums,  and  libraries  sig- 
nify. Nothing  is  foreign  to  their  purpose,  and  those 
who  work  in  them  are  animated  by  the  firm  belief  that 
the  advancement  of  knowledge  in  any  direction  con- 
tributes to  the^welfare  of  man.  Nor  is  research  re- 
stricted to  material  things  —  the  scholars  of  a  university 
are  equally  interested  in  all  that  pertains  to  the  nature 
of  man,  the  growth  of  society,  the  study  of  language, 
and  the  establishment  of  the  principles  of  intellectual 
and  moral  conduct. 

Daniel  C.  Oilman. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  105 


TIME-SERVERS. 


Our  young  people  should  be  taught  to  be  always 
alive  to  the  circumstances  which  surround  them ;  and, 
in  the  only  good  and  happy  sense  of  the  term,  to  be 
time-servers.  It  is  desirable  that  they  should  be  ob- 
servant not  only  of  their  books,  but  of  all  things  not 
sinful  which  meet  their  perception,  in  the  passing  scen- 
ery of  life.  By  this  means  they  will  greatly  increase 
their  store  of  knowledge,  and  will  be  gradually  prepared 
for  usefulness  in  their  day  and  generation. 

Joseph  John  Gurney. 


MORAL  ENTHUSIASM. 

An  intense  moral  enthusiasm  must  underlie  and  fur- 
nish the  most  powerful  spring  of  every  truly  noble  life. 
A  soul  without  such  motive  must  fail.  Half-hearted 
work  can  never  succeed  where  man  has  all  the  forces  of 
nature,  and  all  the  adverse  forces  of  his  own  being  and 
of  society  to  contend  with,  master,  and  turn  to  account. 
One  who  saw  Michael  Angelo  engaged  at  his  work  tells 
us  that  he  wrought  with  fearful  energy  and  earnestness. 
He  would  accomplish  many  times  as  much  as  other 
men.  Every  stroke  was  so  with  all  the  soul,  that,  as  he 
saw  the  huge  fragments  fly  from  the  rapid  blows,  the 
observer  trembled  lest  the  statue  should  be  ruined. 
But  the  enthusiastic  workman  held  ceaselessly  on,  cut- 
ting and  filing,  dashing  off  as  incumbrances  every  parti- 
cle which  hindered  the  completion  of  the  likeness,  until 
the  once  shapeless  block  took  shape  and  polish  and 
beauty,  and  stood  forth  the  finished  work  of  his  hand, 


I06  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

his  brain,  his  soul,  his  hfe,  and  the  perfect  embodiment 
of  his  ideal.  Any  man  who  would  accomplish  the  true 
work  of  life  may  see  in  the  great  sculptor  his  model. 
With  the  grandest  possible  mission  of  duty  taking  hold 
on  God  and  immortality,  his  may  well  be  the  grandest 
possible  moral  enthusiasm ;  and  with  the  whole  being 
directed  ceaselessly  to  the  fulfilment  of  such  a  mission 
under  the  influence  of  such  a  motive,  his  may  well  be 
the  grandest  possible  moral  success. 

D.  S.  Gregory. 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   CLASSICS. 

The  scientific  school  and  the  classical  cannot  coalesce. 
They  differ  in  the  choice  of  studies.  They  also  differ  in 
the  modes  and  in  the  aims  of  study.  The  one  is  special, 
the  other  general.  The  one  assumes  a  chosen  field  of 
work,  and  prepares  the  student  to  fill  it.  The  other 
knows  nothing  about  the  student's  ultimate  intentions, 
and  cares  nothing  for  them.  The  one  dismisses  its 
pupil  with  a  certificate  of  preparation  for  his  future 
work.  The  other  admonishes  him  that  his  broader 
study  must  be  supplemented  by  his  technical  training. 
To  substitute  the  scientific  school  for  the  classical  is 
merely  to  build  the  superstructure  at  the  expense  of  its 
foundation,  to  let  an  easier  and  a  shorter  discipline  take 
the  place  of  a  severer  and  a  more  prolonged.  If  the 
additional  time  gained  for  a  practical  branch  of  educa- 
tion secures  greater  depth  of  acquirement,  this  advan- 
tage is  offset  by  the  loss  of  that  breadth  which  is  even 
more  important  to  youth.  Of  course,  in  dealing  with 
the   higher   education  we   must   assume  the  student's 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  107 

ability  to  give  to  it  the  necessary  time,  just  as  the  exist- 
ence of  the  higher  schools  implies  wealth  and  leisure 
and  culture  in  the  community  which  supports  them. 
The  classical  school  could  not  exist  in  a  purely  indus- 
trial society,  dependent  for  its  daily  support  on  its  daily 
labor. 

The  choice  then  urged  upon  us  is  between  a  prepara- 
tory education  that  is  general,  and  one  that  is  special ; 
between  a  course  of  study  which  is  built  up  on  the 
Greek  as  the  most  perfect  language  for  the  expression 
of  human  thought  ever  used  by  man,  the  language 
underlying  all  modern  literature  and  permeating  all 
western  culture,  and  a  course  that  substitutes  for  the 
Greek  something,  the  acquisition  of  which  involves  less 
labor  and  requires  less  time.  I  say  build  up  on  the 
Greek,  for  its  influence  upon  the  Latin  was  so  strong 
that  to  one  ignorant  of  it,  Roman  literature  is  meaning- 
less, and  Roman  history,  during  the  periods  in  which 
Roman  action  and  Roman  thought  have  most  affected 
our  own,  becomes  unintelligible.  I  say  build  up  on  the 
Greek,  for  broad  culture  involves  Greek  learning  by  an 
implication  more  close  and  necessary  than  I  fear  even 
some  of  our  instructors  are  willing  to  admit.  Without 
Greek  the  very  name  of  classical  education  becomes  a 
misnomer.  One  half  of  modern  and  mediaeval  life  can 
be  explained  only  by  reference  to  Roman  letters, 
Roman  thought,  and  Roman  law,  and  all  these  drew 
their  inspiration  and  much  of  their  matter  from  that 
long  roll  which  contains  the  records  of  Greek  genius, 
beginning  with  the  marvellous  songs -of  the  Homeric 
Skalds,  and  for  us  ending  with  the  splendid  harangues 
of  Chrusostomos. 

Arnold  Green. 


I08  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

The  love  of  study,  a  passion  which  derives  fresh  vigor 
from  enjoyment,  supplies  each  day,  each  hour,  with  a 
perpetual  source  of  independent  and  rational  pleasure. 

Edward  Gibbon. 


EDUCATION   LIFE-LONG. 

It  is  an  error  to  suppose  that  a  course  of  study  is 
confined  to  the  period  of  youth,  and  that  when  a  young 
man  has  left  school  or  college,  he  has  finished  his  educa- 
tion, and  has  nothing  to  study  but  his  profession.  In 
truth  he  has  done  little  more  than  treasure  up  some  of 
the  important  materials  and  acquire  the  elementary 
habits  and  discipline  which  are  indispensable  to  the 
continued  improvement  of  his  mind.  If  he  expects  to 
be  a  scholar,  not  in  the  literary  sense  of  the  word,  but 
in  a  far  higher  and  nobler  sense,  as  a  Christian,  patriot, 
philanthropist,  and  public  servant,  in  the  state  or 
national  councils,  in  literary,  benevolent,  and  religious 
institutions ;  if  he  means  to  be  distinguished  for  his 
sense  of  duty,  and  his  spirit  of  usefulness,  for  just  prin- 
ciples, enlarged  views,  dignified  sentiments  and  liberal 
feelings,  for  sound  thinking  and  clear,  close  reasoning, 
let  him  be  assured  that  he  has  done  little  more  than  lay 
the  foundations,  in  the  school,  or  even  in  the  college,  up 
to  the  age  of  twenty.  He  must  make  up  his  mind  to  be 
a  devoted  student,  in  spite  of  his  professional  engage- 
ments, for  ten  years  at  least ;  until  he  shall  have  been 
able  to  deepen,  and  strengthen,  and  enlarge,  and  elevate 
his  mind,  so  as  to  fit  himself  for  solid,  honorable,  per- 
manent usefulness.  Let  him  remember  that  the  school 
only  prepares  the  youth  to  enter  on  the  course  of  study 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  lOp 

appropriate  to  the  young  man ;  and  that  the  college  only 
enables  the  young  man  to  enter  on  the  course  of  study 
appropriate  to  the  man.  Manhood  has  its  appropriate 
course  of  study,  and  the  difference  between  men  arises 
very  much  from  their  selection  and  pursuit  of  a  right 
course  of  study.  Many  fine  minds,  capable  of  enlarged 
and  durable  improvement  and  usefulness,  are  lost  every 
year  to  the  community  in  which  their  lot  is  cast,  to  the 
country  they  are  bound  to  serve,  to  the  cause  of  religion, 
humanity,  justice,  and  literature ;  because  they  have 
failed  in  this  great  duty,  they  have  neglected  the  course 
of  study  appropriate  to  manhood.  And  here  let  it  be 
remarked  that  the  true  student  never  considers  how 
much  he  reads,  but  rather  how  little,  and  only  what  and 
how  he  reads. 

.  T.  S.  Grimke. 

A  NEGLECTED   STUDY. 

There  is  one  department  of  industry,  that  of  agricul- 
ture, for  which  no  provision  is  made  in  our  popular  sys- 
tem. There  is  scarcely  anything  which  has  the  most 
remote  bearing  upon  the  subject.  The  great  business 
of  life,  for  the  majority  of  mankind,  is  left  to  be  prac- 
tised merely  as  an  art,  based  upon  no  scientific  princi- 
ples. "The  fathers  have  eaten  sour  grapes,  and  the 
children's  teeth  are  set  on  edge."  There  is  enough 
published  on  agriculture,  there  are  sufficient  induce- 
ments to  try  experiments,  offered  by  societies  and  by 
the  legislature,  but  there  is  wanted  a  recipient  power  in 
the  general  mind,  the  power  of  being  instructed.  .  .  . 
The  title  which  Boyle  has  given  to  one  of  his  essays 
applies  with  great  force  to  this  subject,  —  "Of  man's 


no  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

great  ignorance  of  the  uses  of  natural  things."  This  I 
regard  as  the  most  glaring  defect  in  our  system  of 
popular  instruction,  and  one  which  demands,  from  the 
magnitude  of  the  interests  involved,  the  immediate  and 
earnest  attention  of  all  the  friends  of  education. 

Asa  Gray. 


Skill  is  a  consequence  of  education,  and  skill  is  a 
power  ever  tending  to  increase  itself,  and  improve  the 
condition  of  man. 

Anonymous. 


EDUCATED  WOMEN  A  NECESSITY. 

Every  society  needs  the  very  best  talent,  the  highest 
cultivated  talent  that  it  can  get  for  its  own  preservation 
and  safety,  and  for  its  own  elevation  and  progress. 
Every  society,  I  say,  needs  all  and  the  best  intellect  that 
it  can  get.  Our  own  society,  our  democratic  society, 
where  all  the  winds  of  heaven  are  permitted  to  blow 
with  such  freedom,  especially  demands  this.  We  have 
a  great  many  adverse  influences  falling  in  upon  us 
through  emigration  from  the  Old  World,  falling  in  upon 
us  from  the  savages  or  demi-savages  of  the  frontier,  ris- 
ing upon  us  from  the  lower  strata  of  society,  and  we 
need  every  influence  of  good  that  we  can  command  to 
counteract  their  effects.  We  need  all  the  intellect  and 
all  the  heart  of  society  to  meet  these  retrograding, 
down-pulling  tendencies.  We  need  particularly  the 
assistance  of  the  women.  You  know  it  has  been  said 
that  every  great  man  has  had  a  great  mother ;  we  might 
better  say  that  every  man  who  is  anything  at  all  has 


i 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  m 

had  a  great  mother.  As  the  mother's  influence  is  the 
earliest,  so  the  influence  of  the  woman  is  the  most  per- 
manent of  all  the  influences  in  society.  We  want  that 
influence  in  its  best  and  noblest  form  ;  we  want  it  in  its 
most  cultivated  form.  .  .  . 

We,  of  New  York,  that  boasts  itself  the  commercial 
metropolis,  should  have  the  ambition  at  least,  if  not 
the  determination,  to  make  it  also  the  intellectual 
metropolis.  We  here  should  open  our  institutions,  for 
we  have  some  of  the  very  great  ones,  largely  endowed 
with  means  and  well  supplied  with  instructors.  I  say 
that  we  should  insist  that  New  York  should  keep  on  a 
level  with  the  other  cities  of  the  civilized  world,  by 
opening  all  her  institutions  of  learning,  particularly  the 
higher  of  them,  to  the  free  access  of  the  female  sex. 

Parke  Godwin. 


THE   FASCINATION  OF  GREEK. 

A  PROMINENT  Englishman  who  has  carefully  watched 
the  career  of  the  men  who  were  educated  at  Oxford  and 
Cambridge  during  the  first  half  of  this  century,  writing 
late  in  life  to  an  early  Oxford  friend,  makes  some  sug- 
gestive comments  in  speaking  of  the  college  studies  of 
mutual  friends.  He  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  the 
university  men  of  that  period,  who  have  since  become 
prominent  in  literature,  politics,  and  science,  are  gen- 
erally men  who  were  noted  in  college  as  especially  pro- 
ficient in  the  study  of  Greek.  The  ''honor  men"  in 
Greek,  almost  without  exception,  have  made  their  mark 
in  life.  This  is  not  equally  true,  he  says,  of  men  who 
have  taken  honors  for  scholarship  in  Latin,  the  sciences. 


112  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

or  mathematics.  Greek  seemed  to  be  the  touchstone 
for  abiUty.  And  the  truth  educed  was,  not  that  excel- 
lence in  Greek  was  the  cause  of  subsequent  success,  but 
that  no  other  branch  of  study  was  so  certain  to  attract 
and  to  hold  those  well-balanced,  discriminating,  yet 
powerful  minds  which  make  themselves  felt,  by  words 
and  deeds,  in  the  life  and  the  history  of  a  generation. 
Every  teacher  of  the  classics  has  seen  this  power  of  the 
genius  of  the  Greek  language  to  choose  and  hold  its 
friends.  And  yet  Greek  is  commonly  spoken  of  as  a 
study  which  must  be  disagreeable  at  first. 

Merrill  Edwards  Gates. 


Men  should  not  aim    at  talents  they  have  not,  but 
seek  to  cultivate  those  they  have.  I 

A-MnMVMr>TTc  ■ 


Anonymous. 


EARLY   IMPRESSIONS. 

Let  no  one  think  to  erase  the  earliest  impressions  of 
youth.  If  they  have  grown  up  in  a  happy  freedom,  sur- 
rounded with  good  and  noble  circumstances,  in  inter- 
course with  good  men ;  if  their  masters  have  taught 
them  what  must  first  be  learned  in  order  to  make  it 
easier  to  learn  all  else,  and  if  they  have  acquired  all 
such  learning  as  should  never  be  forgotten ;  if  their  first 
actions  have  been  so  managed  that  they  can  in  future 
perfect  themselves  in  goodness,  with  greater  ease  and 
efficiency,  without  being  obliged  to  unlearn  anything ; 
in  such  cases  they  will  live  lives  more  pure,  perfect,  and 
happy  than  persons  whose  first  youthful  powers  are  ex- 
erted in  the  midst  of  untoward  influences  and  evils. 

Goethe. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  1x3 

If  that  sense  of  subordination  is  not  cultivated  in 
children  which  develops  aspirations  after  greatness,  the 
result  is  forwardness  and  pretension  to  wisdom. 


Hegel- 


knowledge  AND  DISCIPLINE. 

The  great  ends  of  education  are  two, — knowledge  and 
discipline.  Knowledge  of  itself  possesses  a  high  value ; 
discipline  of  itself  is  much  more  valuable.  This  princi- 
ple is  universally  admitted  by  educators.  Hence,  in  the 
selection  of  a  course  of  study,  the  question  asked  by 
intelligent  men  is  not  what  studies  will  yield  the  largest 
amount  of  immediate  knowledge,  but  from  what  can  be 
obtained  the  highest  mental  and  moral  discipline  —  a 
discipline  which  will  enable  its  possessors  to  gather 
knowledge  readily  in  any  desired  field,  and  to  perform 
with  success  the  various  moral  duties  of  life. 

Daniel  B.  Hagar. 


MACHINE  TEACHERS  AND  METHODS. 

This  higher  education  of  teachers  as  a  class  renders  pos- 
sible the  successful  introduction  into  the  lower  schools,  — 
especially  into  the  primary  departments,  —  of  those  im- 
proved methods  of  instruction  which  have  lifted  teach- 
ing from  something  less  than  an  empiric  art  to  the  level 
of  a  science,  and  are  doing  more  than  any  other  agency 
to  make  knowledge  loved  by  the  whole  people.  With- 
out the  character,  training  and  resources  which  come 
to  our  teachers  from  a  high-school  education,  these 
methods  would  prove  an  utter  failure,  or  degenerate  into 
a  mechanism  more  lifeless  than  the  worse  mechanism  of 


114 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


the  dreadful  past ;  for  it  may  be  stated  as  an  educa- 
tional axiom,  that  intelligent  methods  can  be  applied  by 
intelligent  teachers  only.  Machine  methods  are  neces- 
sary wherever  machine  teachers  are  found. 

John  Hancock. 


PHILOSOPHICAL  TEACHING. 

Philosophical  teaching  flows  from  a  scientific  knowl- 
edge of  education.  It  embraces,  first,  a  knowledge  of 
the  mind,  and  of  minds ;  second,  a  knowledge  of  the 
branches  of  knowledge  taught ;  third,  a  knowledge  of  the 
relations  of  these  branches  and  the  mind,  considered  as 
the  materials  or  instruments  of  education,  not  to  men- 
tion other  matters.  Such  knowledge  as  this  includes 
personal  experience,  but  it  also  includes  much  of  the 
best  that  has  been  thought  and  said  of  the  science,  his- 
tory, and  art  of  education.  Accordingly  the  philosoph- 
ical teacher  expands  what  he  has  seen  and  thought  into 
what  others  have  seen  and  thought ;  he  has  corrected 
his  own  theories  and  tested  his  own  process  by  bringing 
them  into  contact  with  the  general  body  of  educational 
doctrine  and  history.  Perhaps  it  is  needless  to  say  that 
this  is  the  highest  kind  of  teaching ;  and  that  to  lift  the 
teaching  of  the  country  nearer  and  nearer  to  this  level 
is  the  great  endeavor  of  those  who  are  intelligently  en- 
gaged in  the  educational  work. 

B.  A.  Hinsdale. 


All  learning  is  self-teaching.  It  is  in  the  working  of 
the  pupil's  own  mind  that  his  progress  in  knowledge 
depends.  The  great  business  of  the  master  is  to  teach 
the  pupil  to  teach  himself.  . 

^    ^  Anonymous. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  u^ 


SELF-EDUCATED   MEN. 


We  hear  much  said  about  self-educated  men,  and  a 
broad  distinction  is  made  between  them  and  others  ;  but 
the  truth  is,  that  every  man  who  is  educated  at  all  is, 
and  must  be,  self-educated. 

There  are  no  more  two  methods  in  which  the  mind 
can  make  progress,  than  there  are  two  methods  in  which 
plants  can  grow.  One  seed  may  be  blown  by  the  winds, 
and  cast  upon  the  southern,  or  perchance  on  the  north- 
ern side  of  some  distant  hill,  and  may  there  germinate, 
and  take  root,  and  do  battle  alone  with  the  elements, 
and  it  may  be  so  favored  by  the  soil  and  climate  that  it 
shall  lift  itself  in  surpassing  strength  and  beauty ;  an- 
other may  be  planted  carefully  in  a  good  soil,  and  the 
hand  of  tillage  may  be  applied  to  it,  yet  must  this  also 
draw  for  itself  nutriment  from  the  soil,  and  for  itself 
withstand  the  rush  of  the  tempest,  and  lift  its  head  on 
high  only  as  it  strikes  its  roots  deep  in  the  earth.  It  is 
for  the  want  of  understanding  this  properly,  that  extrav- 
agant expectations  are  entertained  of  instructors  and  of 
institutions ;  and  that  those  who  go  to  college  some- 
times expect,  and  the  community  expect,  that  they  will 
be  learned,  of  course,  —  as  if  they  could  be  inoculated 
with  knowledge,  or  obtain  it  by  absorption.  This  broad 
distinction  between  self-educated  men  and  others  has 
done  harm ;  for  young  men  will  not  set  themselves  effi- 
ciently at  work  until  they  feel  that  there  is  an  all-impor- 
tant part  which  they  must  perfect  for  themselves,  and 
which  no  one  can  do  for  them. 

Mark  Hopkins 


Il6  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

A  DRAUGHT   OF  NECTAR. 

Suppose  a  person  to  have  studied  Xenophon  and 
Thucydides,  till  he  has  attained  to  the  same  thorough 
comprehension  of  them  both  ;  and  this  is  so  far  from 
being  an  unwarrantable  supposition  that  the  very  diffi- 
culties of  Thucydides  tempt  and  stimulate  an  intelligent 
reader  to  form  a  more  intimate  acquaintance  with  him  : 
which  of  .the  two  will  have  strengthened  the  student's 
mind  the  most  ?  From  which  will  he  have  derived  the 
richest  and  most  lasting  treasures  of  thought  ?  Who 
that  has  made  friends  with  Dante,  has  not  had  his  in- 
tellect nerved  and  expanded  by  following  the  pilgrim 
through  his  triple  world  ?  and  would  Tasso  have  done 
as  much  for  him  ?  The  labor  itself,  which  must  be  spent 
in  order  to  understand  Sophocles  or  Shakespeare,  to 
search  out  their  hidden  beauties,  to  trace  their  labyrin- 
thine movements,  to  dive  into  their  bright,  jewelled  cav- 
erns, and  converse  with  the  sea-nymphs  that  dwell  there, 
is  its  own  abundant  reward ;  not  merely  from  the  enjoy- 
ment that  accompanies  it,  but  because  such  pleasure 
—  indeed,  all  pleasure  that  is  congenial  to  our  better 
nature — is  refreshing  and  invigorating,  like  a  draught 
of  nectar  from  heaven.  In  such  studies  we  imitate  the 
example  of  the  eagle,  unsealing  his  eyesight  by  gazing 
at  the  sun. 

J.  C.  Hare. 

THE  FINEST  OF   THE   FINE    ARTS. 

Still  another  of  the  silent  but  formative  agencies  in 
education  is  that  combination  of  physical  signs  and  mo- 
tions which  we  designate  in  the  aggregate  as  manners. 
Some  one  has  said  :  "  A  beautiful  form  is  better  than  a 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  II7 

beautiful  face ;  but  beautiful  behavior  is  better  than  a 
beautiful  form.  It  is  the  finest  of  the  fine  arts.  It  abol- 
ishes all  considerations  of  magnitude,  and  equals  the 
majesty  of  the  world."  A  treatise  that  should  philo- 
sophically exhibit  the  relative  proportion  of  text-books 
and  mere  manners,  in  their  effects  on  the  whole  being 
of  a  pupil,  would  probably  offer  matter  for  surprise  and 
for  use.  It  was  said  that  an  experienced  observer  could 
tell,  in  Parliament,  of  a  morning,  which  way  the  minis- 
terial wind  blew,  by  noticing  how  Sir  Robert  Peel  threw 
open  the  collar  of  his  coat.  Manners  are  a  compound 
of  form  and  spirit  — spirit  acted  into  form.  The  reason 
that  the  manner  is  so  often  spiritless  and  unmeaning  is, 
that  the  person  does  not  contain  mind  enough  to  inform 
and  carry  off  the  body.  There  is  a  struggle  between 
the  liberty  of  the  heart  and  the  resistance  of  the  ma- 
chine, resulting  in  awkwardness  whenever  the  latter  gets 
the  advantage.  The  reason  a  person's  manner  is  formal 
is,  that  his  sluggish  imitation  of  what  he  has  seen,  or 
else  a  false  and  selfish  ambition,  comes  in  between  his 
nature  and  his  action,  to  disturb  the  harmony  and  over- 
bear a  real  grace  with  a  vicious  ornament.  The  young, 
quite  as  readily  as  the  old,  detect  a  sensible  and  kind 
and  high-hearted  nature,  or  its  opposite,  through  this 
visible  system  of  characters,  but  they  draw  their  conclu- 
sion without  knowing  any  such  process,  as  unconsciously 
as  the  manner  itself  is  worn.  The  effect  takes  place 
both  on  the  intellectual  faculties  and  the  affections ;  for 
very  fine  manners  are  able  to  quicken  and  sharpen  the 
play  of  thought,  making  conversation  more  brilliant  be- 
cause the  conceptions  are  livelier.  D'Aguesseau  says 
of  Fenelon,  that  the  charm  of  his  manner,  and  a  certain 


Il8  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

indescribable  expression,  made  his  hearers  fancy  that 
instead  of  mastering  the  sciences  he  discoursed  upon, 
he  had  invented  them. 

Manners  also  react  upon  the  mind  that  produces 
them,  just  as  they  themselves  are  reacted  upon  by  the 
dress  in  which  they  appear.  It  used  to  be  a  saying 
among  the  old-school  gentlemen  and  ladies,  that  a 
courtly  bow  could  not  be  made  without  a  handsome 
stocking  and  slipper.  Then  there  is  a  connection 
more  sacred  still  between  the  manners  and  the  affec- 
tions. They  act  magically  upon  the  springs  of  feeling. 
They  teach  us  love  and  hate,  indifference  and  zeal. 
They  are  the  ever-present  sculpture-gallery.  The  spi- 
nal cord  is  a  telegraphic  wire  with  a  hundred  ends.  But 
whoever  imagines  legitimate  manners  can  be  taken  up 
and  laid  aside,  put  on  and  off,  for  the  moment,  has 
missed  their  deepest  law. 

Doubtless  there  are  artificial  manners,  but  only  in 
artificial  persons.  A  French  dancing-master,  a  Mon- 
sieur Turveydrop,  can  manufacture  a  deportment  for 
you,  and  you  can  wear  it,  but  not  till  your  mind  has 
condescended  to  the  Turveydrop  level,  and  then  the 
deportment  only  faithfully  indicates  the  character  again. 
A  noble  and  attractive  every-day  bearing  comes  of  good- 
ness, of  sincerity,  of  refinement.  And  these  are  bred 
in  years,  not  moments.  The  principle  that  rules  your 
life  is  the  sure  posture-master. 

Frederic  D.  Huntington. 


What  a  man  has  learned  is  of  importance,  but  what 
he  is,  what  he  can  do,  what  he  will  become,  are  more 
significant  things. 


Arthur  Helps. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS,  ng 


A  LIBERAL  EDUCATION. 

That  man,  I  think,  has  had  a  liberal  education  who 
has  been  so  trained  in  youth,  that  his  body  is  the  ready 
servant  of  his  will,  and  does  with  ease  and  pleasure  all 
the  work  that  as  a  mechanism  it  is  capable  of ;  whose 
intellect  is  a  clear,  cold,  logic  engine,  with  all  its  parts 
of  equal  strength,  and  in  smooth  working  order,  ready 
like  a  steam  engine,  to  be  turned  to  any  kind  of 
work,  and  spin  the  gossamers  as  well  as  forge  the 
anchors  of  the  mind  ;  whose  mind  is  stored  with  a 
knowledge  of  the  great  and  fundamental  truths  of 
nature,  and  of  the  laws  of  her  operations ;  and  who, 
no  stunted  ascetic,  is  full  of  life  and  fire,  but  whose 
passions  are  trained  to  come  to  heal  by  a  vigorous  will, 
the  servant  of  a  tender  conscience ;  who  has  learned  to 
love  all  beauty  whether  of  nature  or  of  art,  to  hate  all 
vileness,  and  to  respect  others  as  himself. 

Thomas  H.  Huxley. 


Our  whole  life  is  an  education  ;  we  are  ever  learning ; 
every  moment  of  time,  everywhere,  under  all  circum- 
stances, something  is  being  added  to  the  stock  of  our 
previous  attainments. 


Paxton  Hood. 


RECONSTRUCTIVE  POWER. 

It  has  been  often  said  of  the  celebrated  naturalist, 
Cuvier,  with  an  expression  of  wonder  akin  to  our  amuse- 
ment at  the  exploits  of  a  magician,  that,  if  a  single  bone 
of  a  fossil  was  presented  to  him,  he  would  from  that 


120  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

reconstruct  a  picture  of  the  entire  animal.  This  recon- 
structive power  is  a  high  accomplishment,  and  is  not 
confined  to  the  production  of  megatheriums,  mastodons, 
and  other  monsters,  which,  by  reversing  the  prophetic 
telescope,  science  beholds  wandering  about  on  the  earth. 
This  faculty  is  also  employed  by  the  archaeologist,  by 
the  critic  of  ancient  writings,  sacred  or  profane.  What 
an  eloquent  teacher  to  an  acute  numismatist  is  an  old 
coin,  or  to  an  antiquarian  is  an  inscription  in  an  un- 
known tongue !  The  analytic  power  has  been  tasked 
to  the  utmost  to  decipher  the  fragmentary  lore  of  anti- 
quity. And  though  enthusiasts  may  have  been  de- 
ceived, sometimes  intentionally,  by  "  modern  instances  " 
clothed  in  artificial  moss,  yet  the  true  exploits  of  the 
human  mind  in  this  direction,  challenge  our  highest 
admiration. 

This  mental  faculty,  requiring  as  it  does  acuteness  of 
perception  and  comprehensiveness  of  generalization, 
may  be  exercised  on  modern  things,  and  enables  its 
possessor  not  only  to  reproduce  the  past,  but  also  more 
fully  to  understand  the  present,  and  to  provide  both 
things  for  the  future. 

This  faculty  ought  to  be  directly  trained  and  exer- 
cised in  our  schools,  in  a  series  of  studies  which  would 
naturally  follow  object-lessons.  The  pupil  should  be 
trained  not  only  to  describe  the  actual,  with  the  object 
before  him,  but  also  to  project  the  actual,  past,  present, 
or  future,  with  only  imperfect  fragments  of  the  sugges- 
tive objects  before  him.  He  should  be  taught  to  be  a 
creator  as  well  as  an  observer,  for  only  he  who  can 
create  is  competent  to  control. 

E.  O.  Haven. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  12 1 

STUDY  OF  PRINCIPLES. 
If  a  child  can  ask  questions  such  as  would  puzzle  a 
philosopher,  let  us  remember  that  the  greatest  philoso- 
pher can  say  things  such  as  the  simplest  child  could 
understand.  In  very  truth,  the  philosopher  is  sadly 
wanted  in  our  schoolrooms.  The  better  arrangement, 
the  enlightenment  of  facts,  is  wanted.  To  be  sure,  the 
pupil  will  not  comprehend  at  once  the  full  force  and 
excellence  of  any  principles  given  him ;  but  the  bare 
facts  with  which  he  is  now  fed,  —  does  he  realize  them 
at  once  t  At  all  events,  whatever  prominence  you  may 
concede  to  principles,  the  instruction  ought  always  to 
be  based  on  principles  which  will,  in  process  of  time, 
unveil  themselves  to  him.  Like  the  loveless  old  hag, 
in  the  old  story,  who,  when  the  knight  in  obedience  to 
his  promise  has,  amid  the  mingled  scorn  and  pity  of  his 
fellows,  married  her,  turns  out  of  a  sudden  an  exquisite 
beauty,  so  the  lessons  of  one's  boyhood,  however  dull 
and  dreary  at  the  time,  ought  at  last  to  be  found  the 
containers  of  what  is  true  and  beautiful.  They  ought 
at  last  to  be  recognized  as  the  harmonious  limbs  of  a 
well-formed,  soul-inspired  body.  Are  they  so  recog- 
nized }  Or  are  they  found  a  sorry  collection  of  odd 
members,  many  a  one  of  them  misshapen  and  distorted, 
that  could  never  have  been  compacted  harmoniously  to- 
gether, with  a  spirit  to  rule  and  glorify  them  t  Such 
are  facts  when  they  are  not  connected  with  principles. 

J.  W.  Hales. 


The  intellectual  faculty  is  a  goodly  field  capable  of 
great  improvement,  and  it  is  the  worst  husbandry  in  the 
world  to  sow  it  with  trifles  or  impertinences. 

Sir  Matthew  Halb. 


122  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 


INTELLECTUAL  LIVING. 


The  essence  of  intellectual  living  does  not  reside  in 
extent  of  science  or  in  perfection  of  expression,  but  in  a 
constant  preference  for  higher  thoughts  over  lower 
thoughts,  and  this  preference  may  be  the  habit  of  a 
mind  which  has  not  any  very  considerable  amount  of 
information.  This  may  be  very  easily  demonstrated  by 
a  reference  to  men  who  lived  intellectually  in  ages  when 
science  had  scarcely  begun  to  exist,  and  when  there  was 
but  little  literature  that  could  be  of  use  as  an  aid  to  cul- 
ture. The  humblest  subscriber  to  a  mechanic's  institute 
has  easier  access  to  sound  learning  than  had  either  Solo- 
mon or  Aristotle,  yet  both  Solomon  and  Aristotle  lived 
the  intellectual  life.  Whoever  reads  English  is  richer  in 
the  aids  to  culture  than  Plato  was,  yet  Plato  thought  in- 
tellectually. It  is  not  erudition  that  makes  the  intellec- 
tual man,  but  a  sort  of  virtue  which  delights  in  vigorous 
and  beautiful  conduct.  Intellectual  living  is  not  so 
much  an  accomplishment  as  a  state  or  condition  of  the 
mind  in  which  it  seeks  earnestly  for  the  highest  and 
purest  truth.  It  is  the  continual  exercise  of  a  firmly 
noble  choice  between  the  larger  truth  and  the  lesser, 
between  that  which  is  perfectly  just  and  that  which  falls 
a  little  short  of  justice.  The  ideal  life  would  be  to 
choose  thus  firmly  and  delicately  always ;  yet  if  we 
often  blunder  and  fail  for  want  of  perfect  wisdom  and 
clear  light,  have  we  not  the  inward  assurance  that  our 
aspiration  has  been  not  all  in  vain,  that  it  has  brought 
us  a  little  nearer  to  the  Supreme  Intellect  whose  efful- 
gence draws  us  whilst  it  dazzles }  Here  is  the  true 
secret  of  that  fascination  which  belongs  to  intellectual 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  1 23 

pursuits,  that  they  reveal  to  us  a  little  more,  and  yet  a 
little  more,  of  the  eternal  order  of  the  Universe,  estab- 
lishing us  so  firmly  in  what  is  known,  that  we  acquire 
an  unshakable  confidence  in  the  laws  which  govern 
what  is  not,  and  never  can  be  known. 

Phiup  Gilbert  Hamerton. 

Educate  towards  a  knowledge  of  truth,  a  love  of 
the  beautiful,  a  habit  of  doing  the  good,  because  only 
through  these  forms  can  the  self-activity  continue  to 
develop  progressively  in  this  universe. 

Wm.  T.  Harris. 


THE  CLASSICS  A  DELIGHT. 
The  error  committed  in  our  colleges,  of  making 
Latin  and  Greek  compulsory,  and,  therefore,  unattrac- 
tive, should  not  make  us  forget  that  this  is,  after  all,  an 
error  in  the  direction  of  high  culture,  and  one  more  par- 
donable in  America  than  anywhere  else.  These  lan- 
guages are  a  perpetual  protest  against  the  strong 
tendency  to  make  all  American  education  hasty  and 
superficial.  They  stand  for  a  learning  which  makes 
no  money,  but  helps  to  make  men.  Astronomy, 
metaphysics,  the  higher  mathematics,  and  the  criti- 
cal or  literary  study  of  the  modern  languages,  have 
the  same  advantage ;  but  the  Latin  and  Greek  tongues 
represent  this  culture  best,  for  they  remain  still  syn- 
onymous with  accurate  linguistic  training,  and  with 
the  study  of  form  in  literature.  Compared  with  these, 
all  modern  languages  are  undeniably  loose  in  structure, 
deficient  in  models,  and  destitute  of  the  apparatus  of 
critical  study.     It  is  certainly  unfortunate  that  it  is  so  ; 


124 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


but  there  is  the  fact.  The  modern  languages  must  be 
completely  transformed  in  structure,  literary  models, 
text-books,  and  mode  of  teaching,  before  they  can  be 
used  in  education  as  we  now  use  the  Latin  and  Greek. 
I  know  of  no  institution  in  America  in  which  it  is  even 
attempted  thus  to  use  them ;  none  where  they  are  yet 
taught  except  as  accomplishments.  Nor  is  it  apparent 
how  they  could  be  otherwise  taught  with  the  ordinary 
instrumentalities.  A  man  may  speak  a  dozen  dialects 
as  fluently  as  a  European  courier,  and  yet  know  as  little 
as  the  courier  knows  of  the  principles  of  language.  On 
the  other  hand,  it  is  impossible  for  any  boy  to  have 
faithfully  learned  the  simplest  manual  of  Latin  or  Greek 
grammar  without  having  laid  some  foundation  for  sys- 
tematic philology. 

And  as  for  the  literary  value  of  these  languages,  I 
will  go  still  further,  and  with  especial  reference  to  that 
which  there  is  most  disposition  to  banish  from  use  — 
the  Greek.  It  certainly  is  not  a  hasty  or  boyish  judg- 
ment on  my  part,  nor  yet  one  in  which  pedantry  or 
servility  can  have  much  to  do,  when  I  deliberately  avow 
the  belief  that  the  Greek  literature  is  still  so  entirely 
unequalled  among  the  accumulated  memorials  of  the 
world,  that  it  seems  to  differ  from  all  others  in  kind 
rather  than  in  degree.  In  writing  this  I  am  thinking 
less  of  Plato  than  of  Homer,  and  not  more  of  Homer 
than  of  the  dramatic  and  lyric  poets.  So  far  from  the 
knowledge  of  other  literatures  tending  to  depreciate 
the  Greek,  it  seems  to  me  that  no  one  can  adequately 
value  this  who  has  not  come  back  to  it  after  long  study 
of  the  others.  Ampere,  that  master  of  French  prose, 
has  hardly  overstated  the  truth  when  he  says  that  the 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  1 25 

man  best  versed  in  all  other  books  must  say,  after  all, 
in  returning  to  a  volume  of  Homer  or  Sophocles,  "  Here 
is  beauty  true  and  sovereign  ;  its  like  was  never  written 
among  men  —  Voila  la  beaute  veritable  et  souveraine  ; 
jamais  il  ne  s'est  ^crit  rien  de  pareil  chez  les  hommes." 
I  do  not  see  how  there  could  possibly  be  a  list  of  the 
dozen  masterpieces  of  the  world's  literature  of  which 
at  least  one-half  should  not  be  Greek.  And,  indeed, 
when  one  considers  the  mere  vehicle,  the  language 
itself,  one  must  remember  that  there  is  no  more  pos- 
sibility of  arbitrary  choice  in  languages  than  in  stones  ; 
the  best  is  the  best ;  and  Greek,  the  native  tongue  of 
sculptors,  is  the  only  tongue  that  has  the  texture  of 

mar  Die.  Thomas  Wentworth  Higginson. 


Notions  may  be  imported  by  books   from  abroad ; 
ideas  must  be  grown  at  home  by  thought. 

J.  C.  Hare. 


HOW  I  WAS   EDUCATED. 

But  the  good  of  a  college  is  not  in  the  things  which 
it  teaches.  I  believe  the  '^  New  Education  "  thinks  it  is; 
but  that  is  the  mistake  of  the  New  Education.  The 
good  of  a  college  is  to  be  had  from  "  the  fellows  "  who 
are  there,  and  your  associations  with  them.  With  a 
small  circle  of  admirable  friends  of  whom  this  world 
is  by  no  means  worthy,  and  in  a  less  degree  in  the 
various  clubs,  —  even  in  the  much-abused  debating  soci- 
eties,—  I  picked  up  a  set  of  habits  and  facilities  for 
doing  things  one  has  to  do,  for  which  I  am  very  grate- 
ful to  Harvard  College.     I   disliked   the   drudgery  of 


126  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

college  life  through  and  through.  I  counted  the  days 
to  the  next  vacation  from  the  beginning  of  every  term  ; 
and  there  were  then,  alas!  three  terms  in  every  year. 
But,  none  the  less,  I  ought  to  say  that  I  do  not  believe 
that  any  life  outside  of  a  college  has  yet  been  found 
that  will  in  general  do  so  much  for  a  man  in  helping 
him  for  this  business  of  living.  I  could  get  more  infor- 
mation out  of  "Chamber's  Encyclopaedia,"  which  you 
can  buy  for  ten  dollars,  than  any  man  will  acquire,  as 
facts,  by  spending  four  years  in  any  college.  But  the 
business  of  changing  a  boy  into  a  man,  or,  if  you 
please,  changing  an  unlicked  cub  into  a  well-trained 
gentleman,  is,  on  the  whole,  more  simply  and  certainly 
done  in  a  good  college  than  anywhere  else.  So,  as 
Nestor  says,  "it  seems  to  me." 

Edward  Ever3Tt  Hale. 


A  LOFTY  AIM. 

I  KNOW  that  shortcomings  in  education,  as  in  all  else, 
are  more  easily  seen  than  avoided.  I  know,  too,  in 
some  degree,  the  value  even  of  simple  human  passion 
and  inclination  as'  whip  and  spur  to  our  natural  indo- 
lence. But  I  feel  above  all  else  that  educators  in 
America  are  bound  to  concert  their  plans  and  increase 
their  efforts  in  order  to  uphold  a  scheme  of  education 
worthy  of  the  children  of  a  great  democratic  republic. 
Their  first  object  should  be  to  present  to  the  young  per- 
sons under  their  charge  a  view  of  life  so  just  and  ade- 
quate that  these,  passing  from  the  bounds  of  tutelage, 
shall  know  where  and  how  to  seek  the  real  honor,  the 
steadfast  good,  the  abiding  triumph  of  the  just. 

Mrs.  Julia  Ward  Howb. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  12; 

THE   EDUCATOR'S   RESPONSIBILITY. 

I  WILL  not  believe  that  the  life  of  nations  is  like  the 
life  of  trees  ;  that  by  an  inevitable  law  they,  too,  have 
their  periods  of  growth,  maturity,  and  decline.  But  I 
hold  that  it  is  sin  alone  that  makes  a  people  weak,  and 
wickedness  that  makes  them  old,  and  that  in  the  fear  of 
God  and  the  keeping  of  his  commandments  there  is 
perpetual  youth.  Upon  us,  and  those  who  are  to  come 
after  us ;  upon  the  young  especially,  who  are  ever  the 
patriot's  hope  and  the  good  man's  trust ;  and  upon  those 
to  whom  the  training  of  the  young  is  entrusted,  whether 
as  parents  or  teachers,  does  this  great  responsibility 
rest. 

George  S.  Hillard, 


Those  who  take  honors  in  nature's  university,  who 
learn  the  laws  which  govern  men  and  things  and  obey 
them,  are  the  really  great  and  successful  men  in  this 
world. 

Thomas  H.  Huxley. 


WE  WORK   FOR  CULTURE. 

Whatever  you  study,  some  one  will  consider  that 
particular  study  a  foolish  waste  of  time. 

If  you  were  to  abandon  successively  every  subject  of 
intellectual  labor  which  had,  in  its  turn,  been  condemned 
by  some  adviser  as  useless,  the  result  would  be  simple 
intellectual  nakedness.  The  classical  languages,  to  be- 
gin with,  have  long  been  considered  useless  by  the 
majority  of  practical  people  —  and  pray,  what  to  shop- 
keepers, doctors,  attorneys,  artists,  can  be  the  use  of 


128  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

the  higher  mathematics  ?  And  if  these  studies,  which 
have  been  conventionally  classed  as  serious  studies,  are 
considered  unnecessary  notwithstanding  the  tremendous 
authority  of  custom,  how  much  the  more  are  those 
studies  exposed  to  a  like  contempt  which  belong  to  the 
category  of  accomplishments.  What  is  the  use  of  draw- 
ing, for  it  ends  in  a  worthless  sketch  ?  Why  should  we 
study  music  when  after  wasting  a  thousand  hours  the 
amateur  cannot  satisfy  the  ear  ?  A  quoi  bon  modern 
languages  when  the  accomplishment  only  enables  us  to 
call  a  waiter  in  French  or  German  who  is  sure  to  an- 
swer us  in  English  ?  And  what,  when  it  is  not  your 
trade,  can  be  the  good  of  dissecting  plants  or  animals  ? 
To  all  questionings  of  this  kind  there  is  but  one  reply. 
We  work  for  culture.  We  work  to  enlarge  the  intelli- 
gence, and  to  make  it  a  better  and  more  effective  instru- 
ment. This  is  our  main  purpose  ;  but  it  may  be  added 
that  even  for  special  labors  it  is  always  difficult  to  say 
beforehand  exactly  what  will  turn  out  in  the  end  to  be 
most  useful.  What,  in  appearance,  can  be  more  emi- 
nently outside  the  work  of  a  landscape  painter  than  the 
study  of  ancient  history }  And  yet  I  can  show  you  how 
an  interest  in  ancient  history  might  indirectly  be  of 
great  service  to  a  landscape  painter.  It  would  make 
him  profoundly  feel  the  human  associations  of  many 
localities  which  to  an  ignorant  man  would  be  devoid  of 
interest  or  meaning ;  and  this  human  interest  in  the 
scenes  where  great  events  have  taken  place,  or  which 
have  been  distinguished  by  the  habitation  of  illustrious 
men  in  other  ages,  is  in  fact  one  of  the  great  funda- 
mental motives  of  landscape  painting.  It  has  been  very 
much  questioned,  especially  by  foreign  critics,  whether 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  I2q 

the  interest  in  botany  which  is  taken  by  some  of  the 
more  cultivated  EngUsh  landscape  painters  is  not  for 
them  a  false  direction  and  wrong  employment  of  the 
mind ;  but  a  landscape  painter  may  feel  his  interest  in 
vegetation  infinitely  increased  by  the  accurate  knowl- 
edge of  its  laws,  and  such  an  increase  of  interest  would 
make  him  work  more  zealously,  and  with  less  danger  of 
weariness  and  enmii^  besides  being  a  very  useful  help  to 
the  memory  in  retaining  the  authentic  vegetable  forms. 
It  may  seem  more  difficult  to  show  the  possibility  of  a 
study  apparently  so  entirely  outside  of  other  studies  as 
music  is ;  and  yet  music  has  an  important  influence  on 
the  whole  of  our  emotional  nature,  and  indirectly  upon 
expression  of  all  kinds.  He  who  has  once  learned  the 
self-control  of  the  musician,  the  use  of  piano  and  forte, 
each  in  its  right  place,  when  to  be  lightly  swift  or  ma- 
jestically slow,  and  especially  how  to  keep  to  the  key 
once  chosen  until  the  right  time  has  come  for  changing 
it ;  he  who  has  once  learned  this  knows  the  secret  of 
the  arts.  No  painter,  writer,  orator,  who  had  the  power 
and  judgment  of  a  thoroughly  cultivated  musician,  could 
sin  against  the  broad  principles  of  taste. 

Philip  Gilbert  Hamerton. 


PHYSICAL  SCIENCE. 

Modern  civilization  rests  upon  physical  science  ;  take 
away  her  gifts  to  our  own  country,  and  our  position 
among  the  leading  nations  of  the  world  is  gone  to-mor- 
row ;  for  it  is  physical  science  only  that  makes  intelli- 
gence and  moral  energy  stronger  than  brute  force. 

Physical  science,  its  methods,  its  problems,  and    its 


130 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


difficulties,  will  meet  the  poorest  boy  at  every  turn,  and 
yet  we  educate  him  in  such  a  manner  that  he  shall  enter 
the  world  as  ignorant  of  the  existence  of  the  methods 
and  facts  of  science  as  the  day  he  was  born.  The  mod- 
ern world  is  full  of  artillery  ;  and  we  turn  out  our  chil- 
dren to  do  battle  in  it,  equipped  with  the  shield  and 
sword  of  the  gladiator.  It  is  my  firm  conviction  that 
the  only  way  to  remedy  it  is  to  make  the  elements  of 
physical  science  an  integral  part  of  primary  education. 
I  have  endeavored  to  show  you  how  that  may  be  done 
for  that  branch  of  science  which  it  is  my  business  to 
pursue ;  and  I  can  but  add,  that  I  should  look  upon  the 
day  when  every  schoolmaster  throughout  the  land  was 
a  centre  of  genuine,  however  rudimentary,  scientific 
knowledge,  as  an  epoch  in  the  history  of  the  country. 

Thomas  H.  Huxley. 


ON  READING  WISELY. 

To  stuff  our  minds  with  what  is  simply  trivial,  simply 
curious,  or  that  which  at  best  has  but  a  low  nutritive 
power,  this  is  to  close  our  minds  to  what  is  solid  and 
enlarging  and  spiritually  sustaining.  ...  I  think  the 
habit  of  reading  wisely  is  one  of  the  most  difficult  habits 
to  acquire,  needing  strong  resolution  and  infinite  pains; 
and  I  hold  the  habit  of  reading  for  mere  reading's  sake, 
instead  of  for  the  sake  of  the  stuff  we  gain  from  read- 
ing, to  be  one  of  the  worst  and  commonest  and  most 
unwholesome  habits  we  have.  Why  do  we  still  suffer  the 
traditional  hypocrisy  about  the  dignity  of  literature,  — 
literature,  I  mean,  in  the  gross,  which  includes  about 
equal  parts  of  what  is  useful  and  what  is  useless  ?     Why 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS f  13  j 

are  books  as  books,  writers  as  writers,  readers  as  read- 
ers, meritorious  and  honorable,  apart  from  any  good  in 
them,  or  anything  that  we  can  get  from  them  ?  Why 
do  we  pride  ourselves  on  our  powers  of  absorbing  print, 
as  our  grandfathers  did  on  their  gifts  in  absorbing  port, 
when  we  know  that  there  is  a  mode  of  absorbing  print 
which  makes  it  impossible  we  can  ever  learn  anything 
good  out  of  books  ?  Our  stately  Milton  said,  in  a  passage 
which  is  one  of  the  watchwords  of  the  English  race, 
"As  good  almost  kill  a  man  as  kill  a  good  book."  But 
has  he  not  also  said  that  he  would  "  have  a  vigilant  eye 
how  books  demean  themselves  as  well  as  men,  and  do 
sharpest  justice  on  them  as  malefactors  "  ?  Yes  !  They 
do  kill  the  good  book  who  deliver  up  their  few  and  pre- 
cious  hours  of  reading  to  the  trivial  book  ;  they  make  it 
dead  for  them  ;  they  do  what  lies  in  them  to  destroy 
"the  precious  life-blood  of  a  master  spirit,  embalmed 
and  treasured  up  on  purpose  to  a  life  beyond  life"  ;  they 
"spill  that  seasoned  life  of  man  preserved  and  stored 
up  in  books."  For  in  the  wilderness  of  books  most 
men,  certainly  all  busy  men,  must  strictly  choose.  If 
they  saturate  their  minds  with  the  idler  books,  the 
"good  book,"  which  Milton  calls  "an  immortality  rather 
than  a  life,"  is  dead  to  them :  it  is  a  book  sealed  up  and 
buried. 

Frederick  Harrison. 


THE   SCHOOL  IN   HISTORY. 
The  school  is  not  one  of  the  cardinal  institutions  of 
civilization,  but  is  a   supplementary  special  institution 
designed  to  re-enforce  one  or  more  of  the  cardinal  insti- 
tutions in  their  educative  functions.     Thus,  in  China  it 


132  Educational  mosaics. 

has  supplemented  the  functions  of  a  patriarchal  state  by 
preparing  officials  for  the  civil  service ;  in  Persia  it 
fitted  youth  for  military  service  ;  in  India  it  perpetu- 
ated the  rule  of  the  Brahmin  caste,  or  the  Hindoo 
church ;  in  Judea  it  supplemented  the  family  and  the 
theocratic  rule ;  in  Athens,  during  the  time  of  the 
Sophists,  it  educated  youth  for  politics  or  for  influence 
in  a  democratic  state  ;  while  in  Sparta  it  educated  for 
military  and  civil  functions  necessary  to  a  rigid  aristoc- 
racy, whose  constitution  required  the  enslavement  of  a 
conquered  race.  The  pedagogy  common  to  all  Greek 
states  trained  the  bodily  form  through  the  pentathlon 
into  gracefulness  and  strength,  so  as  to  express  the 
highest  idea  of  the  Greek  religion  ;  namely,  the  belief 
that  the  gods  were  beautiful  forms,  and  that  man  could 
become  divine  through  beauty.  In  Phoenicia  the  school 
education  fitted  youth  for  manufactures  and  commerce, 
teaching  him  writing  and  arithmetic,  and  morally  dis- 
ciplining him  to  despise  home,  and  love  daring  adven- 
tures in  distant  voyages. 

In  more  modern  states  we  find  school  education 
accented  by  the  predominant  institutions.  In  early 
Protestantism  the  reading  of  the  Bible  and  religious 
psalmody  was  most  essential,  because  the  chief  idea  of 
the  Reformation  was  the  substitution  of  private  judg- 
ment, enlightened  by  reading  of  divine  revelation,  in 
the  place  of  the  authority  of  a  hierarchy.  Jesuit  in- 
struction, on  the  other  hand,  estabhshed  to  counteract 
the  influence  of  Protestant  schools,  laid  the  greatest 
stress  on  supervision  and  espionage,  on  casuistry  and 
the  art  of  defending  the  dogma  against  all  attacks,  and 
on  unquestioning  obedience  to  authority.     The  more  re- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  ,^^ 

cent  forms  of  school  education  are  more  comprehensive, 
and  emphasize  far  more  the  preparation  for  civil  society, 
or  for  what  is  useful  to  the  individual  career  of  the  citi- 
zen, as  well  as  what  fits  him  for  the  development  of  his 
common  human  nature. 

Wm.  T.  Harris. 


The  mind  is  like  a  trunk.     If  well  packed,  it  holds 
almost  everything  ;  if  ill  packed,  next  to  nothing. 

J,  C.  Hare. 


TRAINED   TEACHERS. 

By  law,  every  teacher  and  every  assistant-teacher  in 
the  common  schools  of  Austria-Hungary  must  obtain  a 
certificate  of  qualification  at  the  teachers'  seminary.  A 
similar  law  prevails  in  France,  Germany,  and  most  of 
the  European  countries ;  and  yet  the  United  States, 
which  expends  more  money  on  public  education  than 
any  three  of  these  monarchies  united,  permits  tens  of 
thousands  of  teachers  to  teach  in  the  common  schools, 
with  no  better  certificates  than  the  licenses  of  county 
commissioners  or  country  superintendents  who  may 
never  have  taught  a  day  in  their  lives,  and  who  are  just 
as  qualified  to  issue  a  certificate  to  a  man  to  navigate  a 
ship  as  to  teach  a  school.     This  is  all  wrong. 

It  becomes  the  duty  of  all  teachers,  of  all  patriots,  of 
all  educated  men,  and  particularly  of  the  college  profes- 
sors, who  are,  as  a  rule,  men  of  learning,  to  use  every 
effort  to  spread  the  normal  system,  and  to  compel  every 
teacher  in  the  common  schools  to  obtain  a  certificate  of 
qualification  from  a  normal  school.     Then,  and  not  till 


134  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

then,  the  United  States  will  show  the  best  and  most 
effective  system  of  public  schools  in  the  world  ;  and  the 
people  will  receive  a  full  return  for  all  the  money  ex- 
pended. 

Thomas  Hunter. 


Each  man  is  a  drama  in  himself ;  has  to  play  all  the 
parts  in  it ;  is  to  be  king  and  rebel,  successful  and  van- 
quished, free  and  slave ;  and  needs  a  bringing  up  fit  for 
the  universal  creature  that  he  is. 

Arthur  Helps. 


CHRISTIANITY  AND   THE  PUBLIC   SCHOOLS. 

All  we  have  to  do  is  for  Catholics  and  Protestants  — 
disciples  of  a  common  master — to  come  to  a  common 
understanding  with  respect  to  a  common  basis  of  what 
is  received  as  general  Christianity,  a  practical  quantity 
of  truth  belonging  equally  to  both  sides  to  be  recog- 
nized in  general  legislation,  and  especially  in  the  litera- 
ture and  teaching  of  our  public  schools.  The  difficul- 
ties lie  in  the  mutual  ignorance  and  prejudice  of  both 
parties,  and  fully  as  much  on  the  side  of  the  Protes- 
tants as  of  the  Catholics.  Then  let  the  system  of 
public  schools  be  confined  to  the  branches  of  simply 
common-school  education.  Let  these  common  schools 
be  kept  under  the  local  control  of  the  inhabitants  of 
each  district,  so  that  the  religious  character  of  each 
school  may  conform  in  all  variable  accidents  to  the 
character  of  the  majority  of  the  inhabitants  of  each 
district.  Let  all  centralizing  tendencies  be  watchfully 
guarded  against.     Let  the  Christians  of  the  East,  of  all 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  135 

denominations,  increase  the  number  and  extend  the 
efficiency  of  all  their  Christian  academies  and  higher 
colleges.  And  let  the  Christians  of  the  vast  West  pre- 
occupy the  ground,  and  bend  all  their  energies  in  their 
efforts  to  supply  the  rising  floods  of  their  incoming 
population  with  a  full  apparatus  of  high  schools  and 
colleges,  to  meet  all  possible  demands  for  a  higher  edu- 
cation. One  thing  is  absolutely  certain :  Christianity 
is  ever  increasing  in  power,  and,  in  the  long  run,  will 
never  tolerate  the  absurd  and  aggressive  claims  of  mod- 
ern infidelity.  The  system  of  public  schools  must  be 
held  in  their  sphere,  true  to  the  claims  of  Christianity, 
or  they  must  go,  with  all  other  enemies  of  Christ,  to 
the  wall. 

Archibald  Alexander  Hodge. 


THE  MAN,  NOT  THE  MIND. 

No  system  of  education  is  complete  till  it  concerns 
itself  for  the  entire  body  and  all  the  parts  of  human 
life  —  a  character  high,  erect,  broad-shouldered,  sym- 
metrical, swift ;  not  the  mmd,  as  I  said,  but  the  man. 
Our  familiar  phrase,  "whole-souled,"  expresses  the  aim 
of  learning  as  well  as  any.  You  want  to  rear  men  fit 
and  ready  for  all  spots  and  crises,  prompt  and  busy  in 
affairs,  gentle  among  little  children,  self-reliant  in  dan- 
ger, genial  in  company,  sharp  in  a  jury-box,  tenacious 
at  a  town-meeting,  unseducible  in  a  crowd,  tender  at  a 
sick-bed,  not  likely  to  jump  into  the  first  boat  at  a  ship- 
wreck, affectionate  and  respectable  at  home,  obliging  in 
a  travelling  party,  shrewd  and  just  in  the  market,  rever- 
ent and  punctual  at  the  church;  not  going  about,  as 


136 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


Robert  Hall  said,  "  with  an  air  of  perpetual  apology  for 
the  unpardonable  presumption  of  being  in  the  world," 
nor  yet  forever  supplicating  the  world's  special  consid- 
eration ;  brave  in  action,  patient  in  suffering,  believing 
and  cheerful  everywhere,  fervent  in  spirit,  serving  the 
Lord.  This  is  the  manhood  that  our  age  and  country 
are  asking  of  its  educators,  —  well-built  and  vital,  mani- 
fold and  harmonious,  full  of  wisdom,  full  of  energy,  full 
of  faith. 

Frederic  D.  Huntington. 


ENGLISH   LETTERS. 

It  is  patent  to  every  careful  observer  of  educational 
progress  in  modern  times  that  new  interest  is  con- 
stantly awakening  in  all  that  pertains  to  the  English 
language  and  literature,  nor  is  it  possible  or  necessary 
to  state  in  which  of  these  two  sections  of  the  same  gen- 
eral department  such  interest  is  the  more  pronounced. 
While  as  to  English  philology  the  student's  attention  is 
directed  to  the  rapid  increase  of  books  and  appliances, 
careful  inspection  will  mark  a  similar  enthusiasm  in 
distinctively  literary  work.  This  healthful  zeal  is  seen 
in  all  the  branches  of  such  work ;  in  history,  fiction, 
biography,  in  descriptive,  philosophical,  and  miscella- 
neous prose,  and  in  poetry.  One  of  the  special  features 
of  this  modern  development  is  found  in  the  large  vari- 
ety of  suggestion  that  is  given  relative  to  the  best 
methods  in  which  such  a  study  may  be  conducted,  how 
the  academic  student  or  the  citizen  at  large  can  best 
secure  those  helpful  results  which  are  supposed  to  fol- 
low from  diligent  attention  thereto.     Such  volumes  as 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  I^^ 

the  "  English  Men  of  Letters  "  series,  edited  by  Mor- 
ley,  or  the  "  American  Men  of  Letters  "  series,  edited 
by  Warner,  are  of  this  special  character.  They  are 
admirably  designed,  on  the  one  hand,  to  give  a  suffi- 
ciently scholarly  view  of  English  and  American  letters 
to  satisfy  the  critical  student,  and,  on  the  other,  so  to 
simplify  and  vary  the  subject  discussed  as  to  bring  it 
within  the  province  of  the  readable  and  popular.  Much 
of  the  profit  and  pleasure  arising  from  such  a  form  of 
intellectual  pursuit  depends  on  the  particular  form  of 
procedure.  No  department  has  suffered  more  than  that 
of  English  letters,  both  from  the  absence  of  any  definite 
method,  and  from  the  application  of  superficial  meth- 
ods. In  no  department  is  a  well-adjusted  order  of 
study  more  desirable  and  feasible. 

T.  W.  Hunt. 


Every  accession  man  makes  to  his  knowledge  en- 
larges his  power. 


Paxton  Hood. 


TRUE  INTELLECTUAL  GROWTH. 

Assuredly  the  true  way  of  intellectual  growth  is  by 
fencing  in  some  moderate  and  inviting  portion  of  the 
general  domain,  and  then  to  have  the  mind  stay  and 
converse  there  long  enough  to  become  really  and 
thoroughly  at  home  with  the  included  matter,  and  to 
get  a  genuine  and  lasting  relish  of  the  mental  climate  in 
its  special  and  peculiar  qualities.  This,  say  what  you 
will,  is  the  right  method  of  domesticating  the  principles 
of  truth  and  nature  in  the  heart,  of  binding  them  up 


138  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

with  the  inward  quiet  sympathies  and  affections,  so 
that  they  shall  be  an  abiding  love  and  delight,  a  peren- 
nial spring  of  life  and  joy ;  and  when  this  is  done  in  a 
small  sphere,  the  mind  is  then  invested  with  a  predis- 
position to  recognize  and  choose  the  true  and  the  good 
wherever  it  may  go ;  and  in  that  state  the  more  it  con- 
verses with  general  knowledge  the  less  it  will  be  blown 
by  presumption  and  conceit ;  whereas,  an  early  and 
ambitious  smattering  in  many  things  is  pretty  sure  to 
bring  on  that  sort  of  chronic  indigestion  which  converts 
nourishment  to  wind. 

Henry  N.  Hudson. 


THE   STUDY   OF   GEOMETRY. 

It  is  said  that  Plato  wrote  over  his  schoolroom  door, 
**Let  no  one  ignorant  of  geometry  enter  here."  And 
although  the  anecdote  cannot  be  found  in  good  Greek, 
and  is,  therefore,  to  be  considered  rather  mythical,  it 
deserves  to  have  been  true.  It  is  the  inscription  which 
is  in  fact  written  over  all  the  higher  schools  of  life. 
Geometry  is  required  for  admission  into  the  high  schools 
of  nature,  and  is  always  taught  in  nature's  infant  school. 
It  has  been  sadly  neglected  by  human  teachers  since 
the  invention  of  logarithms  and  other  facilities  for  arith- 
metical computation  ;  but  it  has  remained  the  founda- 
tion of  learning,  and  no  man  has  ever  arrived  at  any 
knowledge,  until  he  first  learned  from  Nature  herself, 
unconsciously  perhaps,  geometry  enough  to  build  it 
upon.  .  .  . 

I  would  also  urge  the  study  of  geometry  as  a  source 
of  the  purest  pleasure.  No  intellectual  resource  that 
we  can  give  our  pupils  will  be  to  them  a  more  unfailing 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  1 30 

spring  of  delight  than  the  habit  of  analyzing  forms. 
More  than  any  other  intellectual  habit,  it  will  blend 
itself  naturally  with  every  holy  and  reverent  view  of 
outward  creation  as  the  work  of  a  Divine  hand.  While 
arithmetical  power  is  rarely  employed,  except  in  ac- 
tual computations  for  temporary  ends,  geometrical 
power  is  in  constant  exercise,  in  every  contemplation  of 
the  world  around  us.  As  I  walked  yesterday  morning 
down  the  banks  of  the  Kennebec,  what  was  it  that 
thrilled  my  frame  with  such  ever-varying  delight } 
Not  merely  the  refreshing  air  which  breathed  upon  my 
cheek ;  not  merely  the  fragrance  which  it  brought  from 
the  field  and  forest ;  nor  yet  the  cheerful  sounds  of  ani- 
mate life  and  of  human  labor  ;  nor  the  various  play  of  light 
and  shade  and  coloring  upon  the  landscape ;  —  more 
than  all  these,  it  was  the  perception  of  beautiful  forms 
that  charmed  me  ;  the  forms  of  flowers  beneath  my  feet ; 
the  arrangement  of  leaves  about  the  stems  of  plants,  in 
a  symmetry  hidden  save  to  a  geometrical  eye ;  the  un- 
dulation of  the  land  ;  the  configuration  of  the  shores ; 
the  grouping  of  the  trees,  and  outlines  of  the  forest ;  the 
ripple  on  the  river ;  the  dancing  curves  of  light  at  the 
bottom  of  the  clear  water ;  the  varying  forms  of  clouds 
in  the  sky  above  me  ;  it  was  through  these  various  forms 
that  the  infinite  beauty  of  the  work  of  God  was  chiefly 
revealing  itself,  and  filling  me  with  that  exhilaration  of 
faith  and  indefinable  joy. 

Thomas  Hill. 


VOCAL  MUSIC   IN   PUBLIC   SCHOOLS. 

To  teach  a  proper  use  of  the  voice,  and  give  pupils 
command  of  their  musical  powers  until  they  acquire  the 


I40 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


ability  to  sing  any  composition  of  vocal  music  at  sight/ 
should  be  the  aim  and  object  of  all  instruction  in  music 
in  public  schools.  Everything  necessary  to  enable  the 
pupils  to  do  this  intelligently  should  be  taught,  and 
whatever  is  not  necessary  should  be  left  out  until  this 
ability  is  acquired.  The  great  influence  of  music,  mor- 
ally, mentally,  and  physically,  will  not  be  fully  realized 
until  the  time  now  wasted  over  the  dry  mathematics  of 
the  notation  and  theory  is  spent  in  keeping  constantly 
before  the  mind  by  practice  the  essential  things  to  be 
known,  together  with  their  true  representations. 

H.  E.  Holt. 


SCIENTIFIC   RUTS. 

The  investigator  of  the  present  seeks  his  salvation,  as 
a  rule,  in  devotion  to  one  science,  nay,  often  to  only  a 
part  of  one  science.  He  looks  neither  to  the  right  nor 
to  the  left,  in  order  that  what  is  going  on  in  his  neigh- 
bor's field  may  not  prevent  him  from  burying  himself  in 
his  specialty  to  his  heart's  content.  We  are  far  from 
failing  to  recognize  the  great  value  of  this  absorption  to 
the  progress  of  science ;  indeed,  the  unexampled  expan- 
sion of  science  would  hardly  be  possible  without  the 
self-restraint  which  the  investigator  exercises,  for  the 
most  part  of  his  own  free  choice,  in  limiting  the  field  of 
his  work.  But  it  gives  rise  also  to  serious  alarm.  Too 
exclusive  occupation  with  details  obscures  our  view  of 
the  great  whole,  the  understanding  of  which  is  the  final 
goal  of  all  our  efforts. 

"  Denn  nur  der  grosse  Gegenstand  vermag 
Den  tiefen  grund  der  Menscheit  aufzuregen. 
Im  engen  Kreis  verengert  sich  der  Sinn." 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  ^±1 

And  especially  in  view  of  the  unmistakable  tendency 
of  our  times,  the  disposition  to  combine  and  specialize 
all  effort,  any  stimulus  to  intercourse  with  workers  in 
other  fields  of  study  which  prompts  us  to  open  our  eyes 
to  a  wider  prospect  seems  doubly  desirable.  Ceteris 
paribus  he  whose  scientific  work  is  furthest  from  that  of 
the  mere  mechanic  will  be  sure  of  the  greatest  success. 
But  he  who  isolates  himself  in  his  work,  or  who  main- 
tains intercourse  only  with  his  immediate  companions 
in  his  own  department,  is  peculiarly  exposed  to  the  dan- 
ger of  falling  into  such  petty  mechanical  labor. 

August  Wilhelm  Hofmann. 


Prosperity  is  a  great  teacher ;  adversity  is  a  greater. 
Possession  pampers  the  mind ;  privation  trains  and 
strengthens  it. 


William  Hazlitt. 


Any  one  who  has  been  educated  much  in  appearance, 
and  lacks  capacity,  however  good  his  other  qualities, 
cannot  be  on  good  terms  with  himself. 


Friedrich  Jacobi. 


EDUCATION  A  BIRTHRIGHT. 

In  education,  the  past  century  has  witnessed  a  prog- 
ress which  fully  keeps  pace  with  its  other  great  move- 
ments. The  grand  idea  of  universal  education  is  the 
creation  of  this  age.  Before,  the  privilege  of  the  few,  in 
this  century  education  has  come  to  be  regarded  as  the 
right  and  the  duty  of  all.  The  great  movements  for 
popular  education  —  the  Sunday-school  and  the  free 
school — are  born  of  this  age.    The  church  and  the  state 


142  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

have  alike  learned  to  recognize  education  as  the  birth- 
right of  their  children,  as  well  as  the  foundation  of  their 
own  safety.  The  recognition  of  this  principle,  accom- 
panied by  the  great  national  movements  for  popular 
education,  is  perhaps  the  most  significant  of  all  the 
features  which  mark  this  age,  in  a  sense  far  deeper  than 
any  mere  form  of  government,  as  the  age  of  democracy^ 
in  which  everywhere  the  people  are  recognized  as  the 
supreme  power  in  the  state,  and  the  welfare  of  the  peo- 
ple as  the  chief  end  of  all  government.  For  with  this 
recognition  of  their  power  comes  the  necessity  for  their 
education,  if  on  no  higher  ground,  at  least  as  a  safeguard 
against  their  ignorance. 

Edward  S.  Joynes. 


MIND,   NOT   MATTER. 

The  truth  is,  that  the  knowledge  of  external  nature, 
and  the  sciences  which  that  knowledge  requires  or 
includes,  are  not  the  great  or  the  frequent  business  of 
the  human  mind.  Whether  we  provide  for  action  or  for 
conversation,  whether  we  wish  to  be  useful  or  pleasing, 
the  first  requisite  is  the  religious  and  moral  knowledge 
of  right  and  wrong ;  the  next  is  an  acquaintance  with 
the  history  of  mankind,  and  with  those  examples  which 
may  be  said  to  embody  truth  and  prove  by  events  the 
reasonableness  of  opinions.  Prudence  and  justice  are 
excellences  of  all  times  and  of  all  places  ;  we  are  perpet- 
ually moralists,  but  we  are  geometricians  only  by  chance. 
Our  intercourse  with  intellect,  not  nature,  is  necessary; 
our  speculations  upon  matters  are  voluntary  and  at 
leisure.      Physiological  learning  is  of  such  emergence 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  143 

that  one  may  know  another  half  his  life  without  being 
able  to  estimate  his  skill  in  hydrostatics  or  astronomy ; 
but  his  moral  and  prudential  character  immediately 
appears.  Those  authors,  therefore,  are  to  be  read  at 
schools  that  supply  most  axioms  of  prudence,  most  prin- 
ciples of  moral  truth,  and  most  materials  for  conversa- 
tion ;  and  these  purposes  are  best  served  by  poets, 
orators,  and  historians. 

Samuel  Johnson, 

WORSHIPPING  SELF-MADE  MEN. 

The  too  prevalent  worship  of  the  self-made  man,  in 
this  country,  deplorable  though  it  be,  tempts  the  boy  to 
despise,  as  his  father  possibly  may,  systematic  higher 
education,  and  to  try  to  carve  out  his  own  future  with- 
out it.  In  ninety-nine  cases  out  of  a  hundred  such  a 
boy  fails  and  speedily  sinks  to  the  bottom  ;  never  reaches 
the  fame  of  the  great  self-made  man  who  was  his  ideal ; 
and  is  finally  found  on  a  level  with  men  of  whom  thirteen 
do  not  even  make  a  dozen.  But  the  fact  remains  that 
it  is  a  great  temptation.  College-bred  men  are  too  often 
quoted  below  par  in  this  country.  The  river  cannot  rise 
higher  than  its  source.  Why  should  the  boy  think  higher 
education  necessary,  or  even  desirable,  when  at  the  fire- 
side, in  the  press,  from  the  pulpit  or  the  lecture  rostrum, 
on  the  stump,  at  the  bar, — in  fact,  everywhere, — the 
fame  of  the  self-made  man  is  proclaimed. 

L.  R.  Klemm. 


It  is  pleasant  to  think  that  human  nature  will  always 
be  better  and  better  developed  by  education,  and  that  at 
last  there  will  thus  be  given  it  the  form  which  best 
befits  it. 


144  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

Men  who  have  nothing  but  memory  are  but  living 
lexicons,  and,  as  it  were,  the  pack-horses  of  Parnassus. 

The  best  way  to  comprehend  is  to  do.  What  we 
learn  the  most  thoroughly  is  what  we  learn  to  some 
extent  by  ourselves. 

Immanuel  Kant. 


SYSTEMATIC  ARRANGEMENT. 

A  MAN  setting  out  upon  a  journey  may,  by  carefully 
selecting  only  such  articles  as  he  will  absolutely  require, 
save  himself  much  after-trouble  and  inconvenience  ;  by 
careful  packing,  he  may  put  all  that  he  wishes  to  take 
with  him  into  much  smaller  space  than  they  would  other- 
wise occupy,  and  by  proper  arrangement  he  may  have 
each  article  so  placed  as  that  he  can  readily  find  it  when 
wanted.  Each  of  these  has  its  counterpart  in  educa- 
tion. The  subjects  taught  should  be  carefully  selected 
according  to  their  importance  ;  they  should  be  regularly 
arranged  according  to  their  natural  relations  and  connec- 
tions ;  and  they  should  be  so  disposed  as  to  be  readily 
available  when  required. 

David  Kay. 


It  is  by  pictures  and  music,  by  art  and  song  and  sym- 
bolic representations,  that  all  nations  have  been  educated 
in  their  adolescence. 

I  HOLD  that  whatever  natural  rights  a  human  being 
brings  into  the  world  with  him  at  his  birth,  one  right  he 
indubitably  brings ;  namely,  the  right  of  education. 

The  more  you  know  the  more  you  can  save  yourself 
and  that  which  belongs  to  you,  and  do  more  work  with 

less  effort.  Charles  Kingsley. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS,  I^c 

A  REASON  disciplined  to  the  clear  perception  of  truth, 
a  taste  cultivated  into  an  exquisite  sense  of  beauty,  a 
conscience  delicately  sensitive  to  right  and  virtue,  will 
nearly  realize  our  ideal  of  human  excellence. 

A.  C.  Kendrick. 


SUBMISSION   TO   AUTHORITY. 

Obedience  or  submission  to  authority  is  one  of  the 
first  and  most  important  things  in  education  ;  and  unless 
the  child  is  taught,  when  young,  to  curb  its  desires,  and 
to  yield  its  will  to  that  of  another,  it  will  be  much  more 
difficult,  if  not  impossible,  for  it  to  submit  to  lawful 
authority,  to  reason  and  conscience,  when  it  is  older. 
He  who  has  never  been  taught  to  submit  to  authority, 
who  has  never  been  trained  to  obey  another,  can  be  but 
little  able  to  obey  himself,  to  yield  the  lower  to  the 
higher  principles  of  his  nature,  to  exercise  self-com- 
mand and  self-control.  It  is  not  by  self-will  or  self- 
assertion,  or  any  form  of  self -development  —  develop- 
ment from  within  —  that  any  one  has  evef  become  great, 
but  only  by  being  an  humble  and  submissive  learner  at 
the  feet  of  others  and  in  the  great  school  of  the  world. 
Further,  it  is  a  leading  principle  of  our  nature  that  our 
powers  are  called  forth  by  opposition,  our  faculties  de- 
veloped by  antagonism ;  and  hence,  when  the  motive 
powers  within  are  deprived  of  those  checks  and  restraints 
from  without  that  serve  to  regulate  and  to  strengthen 
them,  they  become  weak  and  languid,  or  act  irregularly, 
and  the  individual  becomes  dull  and  stupid,  or  impulsive 
and  passionate.     When  those  who  have  been  over-in- 


146  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

dulged  in  childhood  and  early  years  come  out  into  the 
world,  they  find  that  they  cannot  get  circumstances  to 
bend  to  them  as  before ;  and  as  they  have  never  learnt 
how,  when  adverse,  they  are  to  be  met  and  overcome, 
they  are  at  a  loss  how  to  deal  with  them,  and  are 
readily  brought  to  a  standstill  by  opposition,  or  to  have 
recourse  to  unsuitable  or  unworthy  means  to  overcome 
them.  A  man  can  never  have  the  full  power  of  his 
faculties  unless  he  have  them  well  under  control,  as 
there  would  be  no  force  in  steam  if  it  were  unrestrained 
and  allowed  to  blow  off  spontaneously. 

David  Kay. 


THEN   HE   IS  EDUCATED. 

Taking  into  account  both  functions  of  education,  we 
may  say  that,  when  a  person  has  stored  his  mind  with 
all  serviceable  materials,  and  cultivated  his  faculties  to 
such  an  extent  that  he  is  able  to  make  a  vigorous  use  of 
the  knowledge  he  possesses  ;  when  his  moral  power  has 
become  so  developed  and  experienced  that  he  not  only 
has  a  delicate  appreciation  of  beauty,  but  his  conscience 
gives  its  sanction  to  that  which  his  intelligence  dictates  ; 
when  his  will  has  been  strengthened  to  such  a  degree 
that  he  is  enabled  to  act  with  decision,  and  bear  with 
constancy  the  strain  of  difficulty  and  disappointment ; 
when  he  recognizes  his  relationship  to  a  superior  Being, 
and  realizes  that  his  every  action  may  have  an  influence 
not  only  for  time,  but  for  eternity ;  and  lastly,  when  his 
mind  has  acquired  such  keen  susceptibility  to  the  beau- 
ties both  of  nature  and  of  art,  that  it  adds  to  his  pleas- 
ures and  softens  his  cares — then  he  is  educated. 

Joseph  Landon. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 


MEN   GROWN,   NOT  MANUFACTURED. 


147 


It  is  difficult  to  say  which  is  the  more  pernicious, 
that  system  which  overstrains  the  active  intelligence  of 
the  willing  and  ambitious  boy,  or  that  which  fills  his 
mind,  while  it  is  yet  mainly  passive  with  the  results  of 
mature  thought,  and  endows  him  with  a  kind  of  minia- 
ture omniscience.  Those  who  survive  such  methods  of 
training  may,  doubtless,  be  very  useful  agents,  very 
serviceable  machines,  but  they  will  rarely  initiate.  With 
a  few  exceptions,  their  minds  will  be  either  exhausted 
or  overlaid.  That  elasticity  of  spirit  which  enables  a 
man  always  to  rise  to  the  level  of  the  varying  require- 
ments of  the  day  and  hour  in  the  family  and  the  state ; 
that  free  movement  of  will  which  is  ever  ready  to 
encounter  more  than  half  way  the  vicissitudes  and  exi- 
gencies of  life ;  that  vivacious  intelligence  which  main- 
tains throughout  life  an  unceasing  love  of  knowledge ; 
that  soundness  of  brain  and  muscle  which  reacts  on  the 
inner  self  by  giving  steadiness  to  moral  purpose,  will 
assuredly  not  be  promoted  by  forcing  more  and  more 
subjects  into  the  school  curriculum,  and  applying  the 
pressure  of  constant  examinations  by  outside  authori- 
ties. We  want  men  who  will  be  ready  for  the  crises  of 
life  as  well  as  for  its  daily  routine  of  duty,  and  who 
will,  by  their  mere  manner  of  encountering  even  their 
ordinary  work,  contribute  to  the  advance  of  the  common- 
wealth in  vigor  and  virtue.  Such  men  alone  are  fully 
competent  for  all  the  services  which  their  country  may 
demand  from  them.  Such  men  may  be  slowly  grown ; 
they  cannot  be  manufactured  under  a  system  of  pres- 
sure. 

S.  S.  Lauxib. 


148  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

THE  TOUCHSTONE   OF  REASON. 

"  Try  all  things,  hold  fast  that  which  is  good,"  is  a 
divine  rule  coming  from  the  Father  of  light  and  truth'; 
and  it  is  hard  to  know  what  other  way  men  can  come  at 
truth  to  lay  hold  of  it,  if  they  do  not  dig  and  search  for 
it  as  for  gold  and  hid  treasure  ;  but  he  that  does  so  must 
have  much  earth  and  rubbish  before  he  gets  the  pure 
metal ;  sand  and  pebbles  and  dross  usually  lie  blended 
with  it ;  but  the  gold  is  nevertheless  gold,  and  will  en- 
rich the  man  that  employs  his  pains  to  seek  and  separate 
it.  Neither  is  there  any  danger  lest  he  should  be  de- 
ceived by  the  mixture.  Every  man  carries  about  him  a 
touchstone,  if  he  will  make  use  of  it,  to  distinguish 
substantial  gold  from  superficial  glitterings,  truth  from 
appearances.  And  indeed  the  use  and  benefit  of  this 
touchstone,  which  is  natural  reason,  is  spoiled  and  lost 
only  by  assuming  prejudices,  overweening  presumption, 
and  narrowing  our  minds. 

John  Locke. 


It  is  of  some  importance  rightly  to  understand  what 
principle  really  underlies  the  divine  education  of  the 
human  race,  because  we  may  be  sure  that  such  should 
be  our  rule  in  training  and  educating  each  individual 
member. 

Lessing. 


He  that  seeketh  the  depth  of  knowledge  is,  as  it  were, 
in  a  labyrinth,  in  the  which  ye  farther  he  goeth,  the 
farther  he  is  from  the  end. 

John  Lyly. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS,  I^g 

NEGLECT  OF  ACCOMPLISHMENTS. 

Among  the  things  neglected  till  too  late  a  period  are 
the  manners,  the  cultivation  of  the  voice,  —  including 
singing,  pronunciation,  and  all  the  characteristics  of 
good  reading ;  gaining  skill  and  expedition  in  the  com- 
mon, necessary,  mechanical  operations,  such  as  sewing, 
knitting,  writing,  and  drawing,  and  acquiring  by  daily 
practice  a  knowledge  and  a  love  of  domestic  pursuits. 
To  these  might  be  added  some  things  which  depend 
almost  entirely  on  the  memory,  such  as  spelling ;  and 
others  which  are  suited  to  lay  the  foundation  of  a  liter- 
ary taste,  such  as  a  judicious  course  of  reading,  practice 
in  composition,  etc.  Those  who  are  to  attend  to  instru- 
mental music,  the  ornamental  branches,  and  the  pronun- 
ciation of  foreign  languages,  must  commence  early. 

Mary  Lyon. 


GIRLS,   AND   QUESTIONS   OF  THE  DAY. 

Let  our  young  girls  be  encouraged  to  acquaint  them- 
selves with  the  great  questions  that  engage  the  atten- 
tion of  our  government,  and  especially  with  those  that 
are  discussed  in  congresses,  legislatures,  and  by  the 
leading  papers  of  the  time.  Let  them  know  what  are 
the  social  and  educational  movements  of  the  day,  and 
what  is  their  bearing  on  the  future  of  the  nation.  Great 
moral  principles  underlie  them  all.  Talk  with  them 
about  the  sectional  wrongs  that  should  be  righted,  the 
great  reforms  that  are  battling  with  injustice,  the  needed 
legislation  that  is  pending  and  slowly  progressing.  These 
matters  can  be  made  as  interesting  to  them  as  Greek 
literature  or  Roman  history,  as  fascinating  as  the  ever- 


I50  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

lasting  novel.  Brief  political  monographs,  terse,  clear, 
and  compact,  are  prepared  by  specialists  and  college 
professors  for  the  instruction  of  our  young  legal  voters. 
Let  them  enter  into  the  studies  of  their  sisters,  who  will 
find  some  knowledge  of  the  great  problems  with  which 
a  nation  wrestles,  as  powerful  a  tonic  mentally  as  are 
physically  the  out-door  games  they  share  with  their 
brothers.  ^^^^  ^_  livermore. 


THE   OFFICE   OF   LETTERS. 

It  is  letters  which  open  the  intelligence  to  the  light 
of  reason  and  the  heart  to  the  impressions  of  senti- 
ment. They  substitute  morality  for  interest,  give  pu- 
pils polish,  exercise  their  judgment,  make  them  more 
sensitive  and  at  the  same  time  more  obedient  to  the 
laws,  more  capable  of  grand  virtues. 

Joseph  Lakanal. 


EDUCATION   DESIRES   THE   BEST. 

Education  is  equally  solicitous  that  letters  should  be 
cultivated,  and  that  the  fields  should  be  ploughed ;  that  all 
the  sciences  and  the  useful  arts  should  be  perfected ; 
that  justice  should  be  administered  and  that  religion 
should  be  taught ;  that  there  should  be  instructed  and 
competent  generals,  magistrates,  and  ecclesiastics,  and 
skilful  artists  and  citizens,  all  in  fit  proportion.  . 

La  Chalotais. 


EDUCATION  A  PERPETUAL  PROCESS. 

The  process   of   education,  whether  at   home   or  in 
school,  is  perpetually  going  on;    the  instructor  may 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  151 

guide,  but  cannot  stop  it.  Whether  he  is  attentive  or 
neglectful,  observation  is  at  work,  intellect  is  develop- 
ing, character  is  forming,  and  all  under  the  most  pow- 
erful influences  from  him,  whether  for  good  or  evil. 
What  he  says  earnestly,  and,  above  all,  what  he  does,  is 
graving  itself  on  the  tenacious  memory  of  childhood. 
His  inconsistencies,  partialities,  ill-temper,  tyranny, 
selfishness,  leave  lasting  traces.  If  his  dispositions 
are  unfavorable,  no  check  from  without  can  remedy 
the  evil.  Parents  can  control  him  little.  They  are 
managed  through  their  prejudices,  at  the  expense  of 
their  children.  A  superior  authority,  with  the  most 
perfect  machinery  of  inspection,  will  fail  to  get  the 
work  of  good  men  performed  by  bad  ones.  Its  laws 
will  be  no  restraint  on  him  to  whom  their  execution  is 
intrusted ;  its  best  systems  fruitless,  where  they  cannot 
insure  states  of  mind  according  with  their  spirit.  The 
government  of  children  must  be  a  despotism,  and  it 
must  have  all  the  vices  of  a  despotism,  if  we  cannot  pur- 
ify the  depositaries  of  supreme  power.  But,  if  the  in- 
structor be  one  who  is  filled  with  a  consciousness  of  his 
high  duties,  how  mighty  is  his  influence !  He  is  the 
fountain  of  instruction,  and  the  prime  source  of  enjoy- 
ment to  his  pupils.  Their  little  difficulties  are  brought 
to  him,  and  in  his  solution  rest.  His  casual  remarks 
sink  into  their  minds.  His  opinions  on  men  and  things 
make  their  way  by  the  double  force  of  authority  and 
affection.  His  companionship,  his  sympathy,  are  above 
all  things  delightful.  The  imitative  principle,  so  power- 
ful in  early  life,  is  incessantly  in  action.  The  children 
are  daily  assimilating  parts  of  his  nature,  making  it 
one  with  their  own.  What  an  influence  is  his  over  their 
future  destiny ! 


152  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

Education  is,  in  truth,  the  first  concern  of  society,  and 
it  ought  to  have  the  energies  of  society's  best  minds. 
The  Athenians,  who  had  ghmpses  of  whatever  was  most 
glorious,  did  in  this  matter  leave  mankind  a  great  exam- 
ple. Teaching  was  the  honorable  occupation  of  their 
greatest  men.  The  brightest  minds  of  Athenian  phi- 
losophy were  the  instructors  of  Athenian  youth ;  so 
keenly  was  the  truth  felt,  that  the  mature  intelligence 
and  moral  power  acquired  in  the  struggles  of  a  distin- 
guished life,  could  perform  no  higher  function  than  that 
of  rearing  up  the  same  precious  fruits  in  the  rising 
minds  of  the  community. 

John  Lalor. 


Give  me  for  a  few  years  the  direction  of  education, 
and  I  agree  to  transform  the  world. 


G,  W.  Leibnitz. 


ALL-AROUND   EDUCATION. 

Let  it  be  our  hope  to  make  a  gentleman  of  every 
youth  who  is  put  under  our  charge;  not  a  conventional 
gentleman,  but  a  man  of  culture,  a  man  of  intellectual 
resource,  a  man  of  public  spirit,  a  man  of  refinement, 
with  that  good  taste  which  is  the  conscience  of  the 
mind,  and  that  conscience  which  is  the  good  taste  of 
the  soul.  .  .  .  Let  our  aim  be  to  give  a  good  all-around 
education,  fitted  to  cope  with  as  many  of  the  exigencies 
of  the  day  as  possible.  I  had  rather  the  college  should 
turn  out  one  of  Aristotle's  four-square  men,  capable  of 
holding  his  own  in  whatever  field  he  may  be  cast,  than 
a  score  of  lop-sided  ones,  developed  abnormally  in  one 
direction. 

James  Russell  Lowell. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  1 53 

That  which  every  gentleman  that  takes  any  care  of 
his  education  desires  for  his  son  is  contained  in  these 
four  things  :  Virtue,  Wisdom,  Good-breeding,  and  Learn- 
ing. 

John  Locke. 


MEDITATION   AND   DISCOURSE. 

I  WILL  only  say  this  one  thing  concerning  books:  that 
however  it  has  got  the  name,  yet  converse  with  books 
is  not,  in  my  opinion,  the  principal  part  of  study ;  there 
are  two  others  that  ought  to  be  joined  with  it,  each 
whereof  contributes  its  share  to  our  improvement  in 
knowledge ;  and  these  are  meditation  and  discourse. 
Reading,  methinks,  is  but  collecting  the  rough  mate- 
rials, amongst  which  a  great  deal  must  be  laid  aside  as 
useless.  Meditation  is,  as  it  were,  choosing  and  fitting 
the  materials,  framing  the  timbers,  squaring  and  laying 
the  stones,  and  raising  the  building  ;  and  discourse  with 
a  friend  (for  wrangling  in  a  dispute  is  of  little  use)  is, 
as  it  were,  surveying  the  structure,  walking  in  the 
rooms,  and  observing  the  symmetry  and  agreement  of 
the  parts,  taking  notice  of  the  solidity  or  defects  of  the 
works,  and  the  best  way  to  find  out  and  correct  what  is 
amiss  ;  besides  that,  it  helps  often  to  discover  truths 
and  fix  them  in  our  minds,  as  much  as  either  of  the 
other  two. 

John  Locke. 

The  only  true  equalizers  in  the  world  are  books ;  the 
only  treasure-house  open  to  all  comers  is  a  library ;  the 
only  wreath  which  will  not  decay  is  knowledge ;  the  only 
jewel  which  you  can  carry  beyond  the  grave  is  wisdom. 

J.  A.  Langford. 


154  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

He  who  sedulously  attends,  pointedly  asks,  coolly 
answers,  calmly  speaks,  and  ceases  when  he  has  noth- 
ing to  say,  is  in  possession  of  the  best  requisites  of  a 
good  converser. 

John  C.  Lavater. 


It  is  only  knowledge,  which,  worne  with  years,  wax- 
eth  young  ;  and  when  all  things  are  cut  away  with  the 
cicle  of  Time,  knowledge  fiourisheth  so  high  that  Time 
cannot  reach  it. 

John  Lylv. 

KNOWLEDGE   OF  THE  SCRIPTURES. 

The  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures,  which  are  the 
ground  of  our  religion,  is  an  essential  part  of  true  edu- 
cation in  its  literary  and  intellectual  aspect.  It  is  a 
branch  of  knowledge  too  high  in  its  claims,  whether 
true  or  false ;  too  wide  in  its  bearings,  whether  histori- 
cal or  religious ;  too  deep  in  its  intimate  connection 
with  all  that  is  deepest  in  our  nature  to  be  ignored  in 
any  scheme  of  education,  whether  liberal  or  restricted. 
In  other  words,  one  cannot  be  called  a  truly  educated 
man  who  is  ignorant  of  the  Bible. 

Tayler  Lewis. 


<  THE   CLASSICS  AND   DISCIPLINE. 

The  processes  necessarily  undergone  by  the  mind  in 
the  study  of  the  ancient  languages  yield  some  of  the 
best  elements  of  intellectual  discipline.  Such  are  the 
processes  of  observation,  comparison,  analysis  and  com- 
bination, classification  and  induction,  —  all  requiring 
direct  mental  application  and  forming  the  power  of 
fixed  and  concentrated  attention,  the  accuracy  of  con- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  I^c 

ception  and  discrimination  of  judgment  which  are  pe- 
culiar to  a  well-trained  mind,  and  give  it  the  mastery 
of  itself  and  the  objects  of  its  pursuit.  I  need  not 
minutely  unfold  this  general  fact,  so  familiar  to  all 
teachers  in  its  special  applications ;  in  the  study  of  the 
meanings  of  Greek  and  Latin  words,  and  a  comparison 
of  the  way  in  which  they  are  used  in  different  places,  of 
their  various  relations  by  inflexion,  and  by  derivation 
and  composition,  and  especially  the  study  of  their  con- 
structions, with  the  nice  habits  of  analysis,  and  the 
clearness  of  vision  it  gives,  along  with  an  insight  into 
the  laws  of  universal  grammar.  I  cannot  but  think 
that  such  discipline  is,  on  some  accounts,  better  yielded 
by  classical  than  by  scientific  studies.  All  these  pro- 
cesses belong,  indeed,  eminently  to  science ;  but  is  it 
not  rather  in  the  investigations  and  discoveries  of  the 
philosopher  in  his  study  than  in  the  efforts  of  youth 
in  the  lecture-room  that  they  exist }  The  young 
student  is  furnished  with  the  results  of  scientific  re- 
search ;  he  gains  valuable  knowledge,  which  is  essen- 
tial to  a  well-educated  man ;  but  the  knowledge  can 
turn  to  discipline  only  when  the  things  of  which  he 
reads  or  hears  come  into  direct  contact  with  his  own 
mind,  and  become  the  object  of  his  observation  and 
comparison,  his  own  classification  and  induction.  But 
in  the  languages,  though  words  are  the  signs  of  things, 
they  are  in  one  sense  things  themselves ;  they  are  ever 
present  to  the  student,  and  directly  used  by  his  own 
senses  and  mind,  seen  and  observed,  heard  and  spoken  ; 
he  must  needs  examine  them  himself,  and  himself  com- 
pare, distinguish,  analyze,  and  construct  them. 

J.  L.  Lincoln. 


156  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

CULTURE  OF  THE  WILL. 

In  the  moral  sphere  again,  will  stands  pre-eminent. 
It  is  this  that  we  have  to  cultivate.  In  the  religious 
sphere  we  have,  following  at  once  Aristotle  and  the 
Christian  doctrine,  to  direct  the  will  and  to  fix  it  in  the 
contemplation  of  the  divine.  It  can  ultimately  find 
satisfaction  for  its  restless  activity  only  in  spiritual 
ideas  and  in  God.  Comparatively  little  value  is  to 
be  attached  by  the  educator  to  moral  instruction,  save 
in  so  far  as  it  is  directed  and  inspired  by  religion.  It 
is  this  marriage  of  the  moral  and  the  spiritual  that  pro- 
duces what  may  be  denoted  by  one  name,  — the  ethical 
life.  The  discipline  of  the  will  in  mere  understanding 
and  knowing  contributes  also  its  share  to  true  ethical 
discipline.  The  unity  of  educational  result  may  be  in 
truth  summed  up  in  the  single  word  ethical.  Our  aim 
in  the  school,  therefore,  is  an  ethical  aim,  and  all  we 
do  is  of  true  value  only  in  so  far  as  it  contributes  to 
this,  —  the  final  cause  of  all  our  teaching.  By  keeping 
this  purpose  steadily  in  view  we  alone  truly  educate  a 
human  being.  Unity  of  purpose  and  method,  both  in 
the  intellectual  and  moral  sphere,  is  thereby  secured. 
It  is  some  such  unity  of  purpose  and  method  which  the 
study  of  the  philosophy  of  education  must  give,  if  it  is 
to  supply  the  place  of  native  inspiration  to  the  teacher. 

S.  S.  Laurie. 

Were  there  neither  soul,  heaven,  nor  hell,  it  would 
still  be  necessary  to  have  schools  for  the  sake  of  affairs 
here  below,  as  the  history  of  the  Greeks  and  the  Romans 
plainly  teaches. 

Martin  Luther. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  1^7 


NOT  RULES,  BUT  CHARACTER. 

I  HAVE  very  little  faith  in  rules  of  style,  but  I  have 
unbounded  faith  in  the  virtue  of  cultivating  direct  and 
precise  expression.  It  is  not  everybody  who  can  com- 
mand the  mighty  rhythm  of  the  greatest  masters  of 
human  speech ;  but  every  one  can  make  reasonably 
sure  that  he  knows  what  he  means,  and  whether  he  has 
found  the  right  word.  It  has  been  said  a  million  times 
that  the  foundation  of  right  expression  in  speech  or 
writing  is  sincerity.  It  is  as  true  now  as  it  has  ever 
been,  and  it  is  not  merely  the  authors  of  books  who 
should  study  right  expression.  It  is  a  part  of  character. 
As  somebody  has  said,  by  learning  to  speak  with  pre- 
cision you  learn  to  think  with  correctness ;  and  firm 
and  vigorous  speech  lies  through  the  cultivation  of  high 
and  noble  sympathies. 

John  Morley. 


THE  GREAT  REGENERATOR. 

Education  in  the  widest  sense  of  the  word  is  the 
great  regenerator  of  human  society.  To  it  we  must 
owe  the  intellectual  habits  we  form,  the  power  which 
the  reason  and  conscience  have  over  the  will,  and  the 
strength  we  possess  to  regulate  the  desires  and  to  sub- 
due the  passions. 

J.    D.   MORELL. 


SHAMEFUL  INEFFICIENCY. 


This  question,  whether  we  should  be  taught  the  clas- 
sics or  the  sciences,  seems  to  me,  I  confess,  very  like  a 
dispute  whether  painters  should  cultivate  drawing  or 
coloring,  or,  to  use  a  more  homely  illustration,  whether 


158  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

a  tailor  should  make  coats  or  trousers.  I  can  only  reply 
by  the  question,  —  why  not  both  ?  Can  anything  de- 
serve the  name  of  a  good  education  which  does  not  in- 
clude literature  and  science  too  ?  If  there  were  no 
more  to  be  said  than  that  scientific  education  teaches  us 
to  think,  and  literary  education  to  express  our  thoughts, 
do  not  we  require  both  ?  and  is  not  any  one  a  poor, 
maimed,  lop-sided  fragment  of  humanity  who  is  deficient 
in  either?  We  are  not  obliged  to  ask  ourselves  whether 
it  is  more  important  to  know  the  languages  or  the  sci- 
ences. Short  as  life  is,  and  shorter  still  as  we  make  it 
by  the  time  we  waste  on  things  which  are  neither  busi- 
ness, nor  meditation,  nor  pleasure,  we  are  not  so  badly 
off  that  our  scholars  need  be  ignorant  of  the  laws  and 
properties  of  the  world  they  live  in,  our  scientific  men 
destitute  of  poetic  feeling  and  artistic  cultivation.  I 
am  amazed  at  the  limited  conception  which  many  edu- 
cational reformers  have  formed  to  themselves  of  a 
human  being's  power  of  acquisition.  The  study  of 
science,  they  truly  say,  is  indispensable;  our  present 
education  neglects  it.  There  is  truth  in  this,  too,  though 
it  is  not  all  truth,  and  they  think  it  impossible  to  find 
room  for  the  studies  which  they  desire  to  encourage, 
but  by  turning  out,  at  least  from  general  education, 
those  which  are  now  chiefly  cultivated.  How  absurd, 
they  say,  that  the  whole  of  boyhood  should  be  taken  up 
in  acquiring  an  imperfect  knowledge  of  two  dead  lan- 
guages. Absurd  indeed :  but  is  the  human  mind's 
capacity  to  learn  measured  by  that  of  Eton  and  West- 
minster to  teach  }  I  should  prefer  to  see  these  reform- 
ers pointing  their  attacks  against  the  shameful  ineffi- 
ciency of  the  schools,  public  and  private,  which  pretend 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  j^g 

to  teach  these  two  languages  and  do  not.  I  should  like 
to  hear  them  denounce  the  wretched  methods  of  teach- 
ing, and  the  criminal  idleness  and  supineness  which 
waste  the  entire  boyhood  of  the  pupils  without  really 
giving  to  most  of  them  more  than  a  smattering,  if  even 
that,  of  the  only  kind  of  knowledge  which  is  even  pre- 
tended to  be  cared  for.  Let  us  try  what  conscientious 
and  intelligent  teaching  can  do,  before  we  presume  to 
decide  what  cannot  be  done. 

John  Stuart  Mill. 


THE   CORNER-STONE. 

The  very  corner-stone  of  an  education  intended  to 
form  great  minds  must  be  the  recognition  of  the  princi- 
ple that  the  object  is  to  call  forth  the  greatest  possible 
quantity  of  intellectual  power,  and  to  inspire  the  in- 
tensest  love  of  truth. 

John  Stuart  Mill. 

INSPIRATION  OF  CURIOSITY. 

Curiosity  must  be  awakened  ere  it  can  be  satisfied ; 
nay,  once  awakened,  it  never  fails  in  the  end  fully  to 
satisfy  itself ;  and  it  has  occurred  to  me,  that  by  simply 
laying  before  the  workingmen  of  the  country  the 
"  story  of  my  education,"  I  may  succeed  in  first  excit- 
ing their  curiosity,  and  next,  occasionally  at  least,  in 
gratifying  it  also.  They  will  find  that  by  far  the  best 
schools  I  ever  attended  are  schools  open  to  them  all ; 
that  the  best  teachers  I  ever  had  are  (though  severe  in 
their  discipline)  always  easy  of  access ;  and  that  the 
special /^r;//  at  which  I  was,  if  I  may  say  so,  most  suc- 
cessful as  a  pupil,  was  a  form  towMfi^Jwas  drawn  by 

>^  OP  thr'^:^ 


l6o  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

a  strong  inclination,  but  at  which  I  had  less  assistance 
from  my  brother  men,  or  even  from  books,  than  at  any 
of  the  others.  There  are  few  of  the  natural  sciences 
which  do  not  lie  quite  as  open  to  the  workingmen  of 
Britain  and  America  as  geology  did  to  me. 

Hugh  Miller. 


THE  SHELL  AND  THE  KERNEL. 

Assuredly  one  fact  which  does  not  directly  affect 
our  own  interest  considered  in  itself,  is  no  better  worth 
knowing  than  another  fact.  The  fact  that  there  is  a 
snake  in  a  pyramid,  or  the  fact  that  Hannibal  crossed 
the  Alps,  are  in  themselves  as  unprofitable  to  us  as  the 
fact  that  there  is  a  green  blind  in  a  particular  house  in 
Threadneedle  Street,  or  the  fact  that  a  Mr.  Smith  comes 
into  the  city  every  morning  on  the  top  of  one  of  the 
Blackwall  stages.  But  it  is  certain  that  those  who  will 
not  crack  the  shell  of  history  will  never  get  at  the  ker- 
nel. Johnson,  with  hasty  arrogance,  pronounced  the 
kernel  worthless,  because  he  saw  no  value  in  the  shell. 
The  real  use  of  travelling  to  distant  countries,  and  of 
studying  the  annals  of  past  times,  is  to  preserve  men 
from  the  contraction  of  mind  which  those  can  hardly 
escape  whose  whole  communion  is  with  one  generation 
and  one  neighborhood ;  who  arrive  at  conclusions  by 
means  of  an  induction  not  sufficiently  copious,  and  who 
therefore  constantly  confound  exceptions  with  rules, 
and  accidents  with  essential  properties.  In  short,  the 
real  use  of  travelling  and  of  studying  history,  is  to  keep 
men  from  being  what  Tom  Dawson  was  in  fiction  and 
Samuel  Johnson  in  reality. 

Thomas  Babington  Macaulay. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  i5i 

CONVERSATION  AND  TRAVEL. 

For  learning  to  judge  well  and  speak  well,  whatever 
presents  itself  to  our  eyes  serves  as  a  sufficient  book. 
The  knavery  of  a  page,  the  blunder  of  a  servant,  a  table 
witticism,  —  all  such  things,  are  so  many  new  things  to 
think  about.  And  for  this  purpose,  conversation  with 
men  is  wonderfully  helpful,  and  so  is  a  visit  to  foreign 
lands  to  bring  back  the  customs  of  those  nations  and 
their  manners,  and  to  whet  and  sharpen  our  wits  by 
rubbing  them  upon  those  of  others. 

Michel  Montaigne. 


Education  alone  can  conduct  us  to  that  enjoyment 
which  is  at  once  best  in  quality  and  infinite  in  quantity. 

Horace  Mann. 


A  THIRD   KIND   OF  KNOWLEDGE. 

After  the  severity  with  which  science  was  for  so 
many  ages  treated  by  literature,  I  cannot  wonder  that 
science  now  retaliates  and  treats  literature  with  con- 
tempt. I  only  have  to  say  on  the  relative  claims  of 
science  and  literature  what  the  great  Dr.  Arnold  said : 
"  If  I  had  to  choose,  I  would  rather  that  a  son  of  mine 
believed  that  the  sun  went  round  the  earth,  than  that  he 
should  be  entirely  deficient  in  kijowledge  of  beauty,  of 
poetry,  and  of  moral  truth."  I  am  glad  to  think  that 
one  may  know  something  of  these  things  and  yet  not 
believe  that  the  sun  goes  round  the  earth.  But  of  the 
two,  I  for  one,  am  not  prepared  to  accept  the  rather 
enormous  pretensions  that  are  nowadays   made   some- 


l62  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

times  for  physical  science  as  the  be-all  and  end-all  of 
education.  Next  to  this,  we  know  that  there  is  a  great 
stir  on  behalf  of  technical  and  commercial  education. 
The  special  needs  of  our  time  and  country  compel  us 
to  pay  a  particular  attention  to  this  subject.  Here 
knowledge  is  business,  and  we  shall  never  hold  our  in- 
dustrial pre-eminence,  with  all  that  hangs  upon  it,  unless 
we  push  on  scientific,  technical,  and  commercial  educa- 
tion with  all  our  might.  But  there  is  —  and  now  I  come 
to  my  subject  —  a  third  kind  of  knowledge,  which,  too, 
in  its  way,  is  business.  There  is  the  cultivation  of  the 
sympathies  and  imagination,  the  quickening  of  the 
moral  sensibilities,  and  the  enlargement  of  the  moral 
vision.  That  is,  I  take  it,  the  business  and  function  of 
literature. 

John  Morley. 

THE   HIGHEST  PERFECTION. 

The  end  of  all  learning  is  to  repair  the  ruins  of  our 
first  parents  by  regaining  to  know  God  aright,  and  out 
of  that  knowledge  to  love  him,  to  imitate  him,  to  be  like 
him,  as  we  may  the  nearest  by  possessing  our  souls  of 
true  virtue,  which  being  united  to  the  heavenly  grace  of 
faith,  makes  up  the  highest  perfection.  But  because 
our  understanding  cannot  in  this  body  found  itself  but 
on  sensible  things,  nor  arrive  so  clearly  to  the  knowl- 
edge of  God  and  things  invisible,  as  by  orderly  conning 
over  the  visible  and  inferior  creature,  the  same  method 
is  necessarily  to  be  followed  in  all  discreet  teaching. 
And  seeing  every  nation  affords  not  experience  and 
tradition  enough  for  all  kinds  of  learning,  therefore  we 
are  chiefly  taught  the  language  of  those  people  who 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


163 


have  at  any  time  been  most  industrious  after  wisdom  ; 
so  that  language  is  but  the  instrument  conveying  to  us 
things  useful  to  be  known.  And  though  a  linguist 
should  pride  himself  to  have  all  the  tongues  that  Babel 
cleft  the  world  into,  yet  if  he  have  not  studied  solid 
things  in  them,  as  well  as  the  words  and  lexicons,  he 
were  nothing  so  much  to  be  esteemed  a  learned  man 
as  any  yeoman  or  tradesman  completely  wise  in  his 
mother  dialect  only. 

John  Milton. 


The  better  a  man  is,  the  greater  his  ardor  in  the  pres- 
ervation of  learning ;  for  he  knows  that  of  all  plagues 
ignorance  is  the  most  pernicious. 


Philip  Melanchthon. 


GRAMMATICAL   STUDIES. 

Grammatical  studies,  although  they  do  not  neces- 
sarily impart  the  power  of  expression  so  effectually  as 
the  imitation  of  the  great  models,  furnish  the  student 
with  the  means  of  entering  into  the  secrets  of  composi- 
tion, of  exploring  the  mysterious  laws  of  creative  genius, 
and  of  submitting  his  own  productions  to  the  control  of 
reason  and  of  established  principles.  It  is  then  that 
theory  becomes  a  useful  auxiliary  to  practice. 

A  familiarity  with  the  national  grammar  will  be  the 
best  preparation  for  a  similar  study  in  the  foreign  lan- 
guage, as  the  learner  will  find  in  the  grammar  of  that 
language  the  same  technical  denominations  and  the 
same  definitions.  It  also  assists  in  translating  from  the 
native  into  the  foreign  tongue,  because,  in  order  to  as- 
certain what  is  the  foreign  expression  corresponding  to 


1 64  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

the  native,  one  must  know  the  nature  of  the  words  to  be 
translated  and  their  functions  in  the  sentence. 

C.  Marcel. 


APPLIED  THOUGHT. 

The  test  of  real  and  vigorous  thinking,  the  thinking 
which  ascertains  truths  instead  of  dreaming  dreams,  is 
successful  application  to  practice.  Where  that  purpose 
does  not  exist  to  give  definiteness,  precision,  and  intel- 
ligible meaning  to  thought,  it  generates  nothing  better 
than  the  mystical  metaphysics  of  the  Pythagoreans,  or 
the  Vedas.  With  respect  to  practical  improvement, 
the  case  is  still  more  evident.  The  character  which  im- 
proves human  life  is  that  which  struggles  with  natural 
powers  and  tendencies,  not  that  which  gives  way  to 
them.  The  self-benefiting  qualities  are  all  on  the  side 
of  the  active  and  vigorous  character. 

John  Stuart  Mill. 


NEVER  ENDING. 


We  all  know  that  the  business  of  education,  in  its 
widest  sense,  is  co-extensive  with  a  man's  life ;  that  it 
begins  with  the  first  moment  of  life  and  ends  with  the 
last ;  and  that  it  goes  on  in  every  combination  of  place, 
company,  and  circumstance  in  which  a  man  may  volun- 
tarily station  himself,  or  into  which  he  may  be  casually 
thrust. 

David  Masson. 

A  STUDENT  should  be  as  frugal  of  his  time  as  a  miser 
of  his  money ;  should  save  it  with  as  much  care,  and 
spend  it  with  as  much  caution. 

John  Mason. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 


PHYSICAL  CULTURE. 


165 


Evidently,  nothing  can  be  more  personal,  more  lit- 
erally and  strictly  vital,  than  bodily  health.  It  is  the 
first  and  the  perpetual  condition  of  success.  In  any 
enterprise  there  are  primary  and  secondary  conditions 
affecting  the  result.  In  making  a  voyage,  it  is  neces- 
sary first  of  all  to  have  a  ship  that  will  float  and  hold 
together  till  the  port  is  gained  ;  it  may  spread  more  or 
less  canvas,  be  manned  by  few  or  many  sailors,  be  navi- 
gated with  more  or  less  skill,  be  fast  or  slow,  be  driven 
by  wind  or  steam,  —  these  are  secondary  matters.  The 
ship  itself,  staunch  enough  to  resist  the  waves,  is  the 
primary  condition  of  the  voyage.  So  in  this  enterprise 
and  voyage  of  life,  a  body  sound  enough  to  hold  to- 
gether till  the  port  of  threescore  and  ten  is  attained 
comes  first  in  all  wise  and  logical  consideration.  Tal- 
ents, learning,  aptitude,  good  chances,  energy,  —  these, 
according  to  the  degree,  affect  the  voyage,  and  make  it 
smooth  or  rough,  quick  or  slow ;  but  they  do  not  deter- 
mine whether  or  not  there  shall  be  a  voyage.  I  do  not 
say  that  these  are  to  be  regarded  lightly,  or  other  than 
as  great  helps ;  but  I  affirm  that,  without  bodily  health, 
they  are  in  vain  so  far  as  achievement  is  concerned. 
Energy,  purpose,  culture,  enthusiasm,  thrift,  —  these 
are  the  engine  that  propel  the  man ;  but  an  engine  re- 
quires first  of  all  proper  bearings,  a  frame  stout  enough 
to  endure  the  strain  of  its  vibrations,  and  to  convert  its 
energy  into  steady  motion.  Professor  Huxley  goes  too 
far,  however,  as  he  is  very  prone  to  do,  when  he  says, 
"  Give  a  man  a  good  deep  chest  and  a  stomach  of  which 
he  never  knew  the  existence,  and  a  boy  must  succeed 


l66  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

in  any  practical  career."  For  it  is  a  fact  that  a  vast 
number  of  very  worthless  beings  fulfil  these  conditions, 
—  "animated  patent  digesters,"  Carlyle  calls  them, — 
whose  only  achievements  are  the  consumption  of  food 
and  oxygen.  Brain  and  race  and  training  have  some- 
thing to  do  with  success  in  practical  careers.  The  cap- 
tain on  the  bridge,  the  pilot  at  the  wheel,  and  the 
engineer  at  the  lever,  are  conditions  of  the  successful 
voyage,  though  the  staunchness  of  the  ship  may  be  the 
primary  condition. 

It  needs  but  a  glance,  however,  at  the  men  who  have 
succeeded  in  any  department  to  perceive  that,  as  a  rule, 
they  have  good  bodies.  I  do  not  say  that  all  men 
who  have  achieved  success  have  lived  long,  or  been  free 
from  disease ;  but  I  assert  that  it  is  impossible  to  name 
a  man  great  in  any  department  of  life,  who  did  not  pos- 
sess what  a  physician  would  call  a  strong  vitality. 
Many  great  men  have  died  early  and  endured  life-long 
disease ;  but  a  close  physiological  examination  would 
show  that  they  were  largely  endowed  with  nervous 
energy,  and  usually  with  a  good  muscular  system.  I 
grant  the  rare  exception,  as  a  skiff  may  by  good  luck 
cross  the  Atlantic.  Nature  is  not  blind.  She  does  not 
put  great  engines  into  weak  ships.  There  is  a  fallacy 
in  the  common  remark  that  the  mind  is  too  great  for 
the  body.  A  great  mind  may  overwork  and  tear  in 
pieces  even  a  good  body  ;  but,  for  the  most  pai^,  any 
body  properly  used  and  superintended  is  strong  enough 
to  uphold  and  do  the  work  of  the  mind  lodged  in  it. 
Man  is  one ;  no  line  can  be  drawn  between  the  working 
functions  of  body  and  mind.  A  part  of  all  mental  ac- 
tion is  also  physical  action.     Will  is  also  a  matter  of 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


167 


nerves,  energy  is  graduated  by  the  blood,  and  the  finest 
thought  stands  with  one  foot  upon  tissue  of  brain.  By 
its  very  definition,  high  thought  and  large  achievement 
imply  a  strong  physical  basis. 

****** 
A  fine  engine  is  favorable  to  the  speed  and  safety  of 
the  voyage ;  but  quite  as  much  depends  upon  the  build 
of    the    vessel,   and    even    more   upon   how   both   are 
handled. 

T.  T.  MUNGER. 


HIGH   IDEALS. 


When  the  fancy  is  devoted  to  its  intended  use,  it 
helps  to  cheer,  to  elevate,  to  ennoble  the  soul.  It  is 
in  its  proper  exercise  when  it  is  picturing  something 
better  than  we  have  ever  yet  realized,  —  some  grand 
ideal  of  excellence,  —  and  sets  us  forth  on  the  attain- 
ment of  it.  All  excellence,  whether  earthly  or  spiritual, 
has  been  attained  by  the  mind  keeping  before  it  and 
dwelling  upon  the  ideas  of  the  great,  the  good,  the 
beautiful,  the  grand,  the  perfect.  The  tradesman  and 
mechanic  attain  to  eminence  by  their  never  allowing 
themselves  to  rest  till  they  can  produce  the  most  fin- 
ished specimens  of  their  particular  work.  The  painter 
and  sculptor  travel  to  distant  lands  that  they  may  see, 
and,  ps  it  were,  fill  their  eye  and  mind  with  the  most 
beautiful  models  of  their  arts.  Poets  have  had  their 
yet  undiscovered  genius  awakened  into  life  as  they  con- 
templated some  of  the  grandest  of  nature's  scenes ;  or, 
as  they  listened  to  the  strains  of  other  poets,  the  spirit 
of  poetry  has  descended  upon  them,  as  the  spirit  of 


l68  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

inspiration  descended  upon  Elisha  while  the  minstrel 
played  before  him.  The  soldier's  spirit  has  been 
aroused,  more  than  even  by  the  stirring  sound  of  the 
war-trumpet,  by  the  record  of  the  courage  and  heroism 
of  other  warriors.  The  fervor  of  one  patriot  has  been 
created  as  he  listened  to  the  burning  words  of  another 
patriot ;  and  many  a  martyr's  zeal  has  been  kindled  at 
the  funeral  pile  of  other  martyrs.  In  this  way,  fathers 
have  handed  down  their  virtues  to  their  children  ;  and 
parents  have  left  their  offspring  a  better  legacy  in  their 
example  than  in  all  their  wealth ;  and  those  who  could 
leave  them  nothing  else,  have  in  this  example  left  them 
the  very  richest  legacy.  In  this  way  the  good  men  of 
one  age  have  influenced  the  characters  of  the  men  of 
another ;  and  the  deeds  of  those  who  have  done  great 
achievements  have  lived  far  longer  than  those  who  per- 
formed them,  and  been  transmitted  from  one  generation 
to  another, 

James  McCosh. 

Those  who  would  train  the  young  mind  to  its  highest 
capacity  must  furnish  to  the  young  the  records  of  deeds 
of  heroism,  of  benevolence,  of  self-sacrifice,  of  courage 
to  resist  the  evil  and  maintain  the  good. 

James  McCosh. 


WANTED:   WELI^BALANCED   MINDS. 

The  want  of  well-balanced  minds  is  a  serious  fault  of 
this  age.  Inventors,  or  would-be  inventors,  are  found, 
who  spend  years  of  time  and  large  sums  of  money  upon 
an  insane  attempt  to  produce  a  result  that  any  respect- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


169 


able  scholar  in  mechanics  or  chemistry  could  have  told 
them  in  five  minutes  could  never  be  obtained.  Mathe- 
maticians are  found,  who,  though  experts  in  their 
favorite  studies,  are  nevertheless  useless  in  the  world, 
for  want  of  the  proper  training  and  development  of 
other  faculties.  Lawsuits  in  numberless  cases  are 
entered  upon  and  fought  through  to  the  bitter  end 
(frequently  terminating  like  the  famous  case  brought 
before  Mr.  Justice  Monkey,  concerning  the  cheese), 
simply  from  a  misunderstanding,  or  from  a  wrong  use 
or  a  wrong  interpretation  of  language.  Education 
should  aim  to  produce  well-balanced  minds,  not  erratic 
geniuses. 

William  A.  Mowrv. 


CONCENTRATION   OF  PURPOSE. 

Distraction  of  pursuit  is  the  rock  on  which  most 
unsuccessful  persons  split  in  early  life.  Nine  men  out 
of  ten  lay  out  their  plans  on  too  vast  a  scale ;  and  they 
who  are  competent  to  do  almost  anything  do  nothing, 
because  they  never  make  up  their  minds  distinctly  as  to 
what  they  want  or  what  they  intend  to  be.  Hence  the 
mournful  failures  we  see  all  around  us  in  every  walk  of 
life.  Behold  a  De  Quincey,  with  all  his  wondrous  and 
weird-like  powers,  his  enormous  learning  and  wealth 
of  thought,  producing  nothing  worthy  of  his  rare  gifts! 
See  a  Coleridge,  a  man  of  Shakesperian  mould,  possess- 
ing a  creative  power  of  Titanic  grasp,  and  yet,  for  want 
of  concentration,  fathoming  among  all  his  vagrancies  no 
foundation,  filling  no  chasms,  and  of  all  his  dazzling  and 
colossal  literary  schemes  not  completing  one !    The  heir 


I/O 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


of  eternity  scorning  to  be  the  slave  of  time!  Feeling 
that  he  has  all  the  ages  to  work  in,  he  squanders  the 
precious  present ;  so  he  lets  his  dreams  go  by  ungrasped, 
his  magnificent  promises  unrealized  ;  and  his  life  may  be 
summed  up  in  the  words  of  Charles  Lamb,  who  writes 
to  a  friend  :  *'  Coleridge  is  dead,  and  is  said  to  have  left 
behind  him  above  forty  thousand  treatises  on  meta- 
physics and  divinity,  not  one  of  them  complete!" 

William  Mathews. 


OVERWORKED   TEACHERS. 

I  NEVER  look  at  a  group  of  teachers  such  as  are  em- 
ployed in  the  colleges  for  girls,  but  I  am  reminded  of  the 
expression  of  St.  Ambrose,  —  "  the  noble  army  of  mar- 
tyrs." The  work  of  a  teacher  should  be  such  as  does 
not  kill,  for  the  value  of  human  life  is  quite  as  great  in 
the  case  of  a  teacher  as  in  that  of  the  student. 

The  pleasant  smile  with  which  a  young  teacher  greets 
her  class  as  she  enters  upon  her  duties  should  become 
more  serene,  more  inspiring  at  middle  life.  But  how 
can  it  be }  I  find  that  the  number  of  students  to  one 
teacher  is  usually  fifty!  The  amount  of  work  that 
teachers  do  is  enormous.  There  seems  to  be  no  "get- 
ting through."  They  work  five  or  six  hours  a  day,  and 
then  take  to  their  rooms  the  written  examinations  and 
problems  for  their  evening  recreation.  Besides,  a  good 
teacher  does  infinitely  higher  work  outside  of  tutorial 
hours.  I  have  sometimes  looked  at  the  variety  of  work 
done  for  some  young  girl,  —  the  careful  watching  over 
her  health,  the  good  counsel  given  in  morals,  the  patient 
endurance  with  loose  mental  habits,  —  and  I  have  said 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  171 

to  myself,  "  How  little  that  parent  knows  the  enormous 
return  which  he  gets  for  his  moneyed  investment ! "  We 
are  constantly  told  that  too  many  women  become  teach- 
ers. Yes;  but  the  number  would  not  be  too  great  if 
fewer  students  were  put  into  the  hands  of  one  teacher. 
A  teacher  should  not  cease  to  be  a  student ;  she  cannot, 
with  safety  ;  she  should  have  time  for  new  acquirements. 
I  would  not  say  give  time  by  lengthening  vacations,  but 
I  would  say  give  time  by  lessening  the  number  of  stu- 
dents. A  young  girl  needs  the  companionship  in  her 
classes  of  a  few,  but  the  teacher  should  know  each  pupil 
individually.  According  to  my  own  idea,  the  proper 
number  for  good  class-work  is  ten ;  but  when  I  asked  a 
professor  of  Cornell  how  many  he  thought  best  for  class 
and  professor,  he  said,  "  Four."  Given  a  small  class 
and  a  teacher  of  any  magnetism,  and  there  need  be  no 
required  attendance. 

Miss  Maria  Mitchell. 


Let  our  pupil  be  provided  with  things ;  words  will 
follow  only  too  fast. 

Philosophy  is  that  which  teaches  us  to  live. 

Michel  Montaigne. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  NEEDED. 

"Industrial  education,"  says  a  recent  writer,  "is 
demanded  by  every  principle  upon  which  our  general 
educational  system  is  based."  We  must  pay  a  fair  price 
for  it.  We  cannot  expect  frugality,  industry,  and  skill 
when  we  have  taken  no  means  to  secure  them.     When 


1/2 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


England  became  conscious  of  her  inferiority,  she  estab- 
lished her  art  and  science  schools,  and  has  made  such 
giant  strides  in  art-production,  that  the  French  have 
been  obliged  to  redouble  their  efforts  in  order  to  retain 
their  traditional  superiority.  We  are  in  the  condition 
England  occupied  thirty  years  ago.  What  shall  Amer- 
ica do.'*  We  have  found  that  general  literary  education 
will  not  answer  this  need.  Our  schools  are  admirable, 
numerous,  expensive,  and  yet  we  stand  at  the  bottom  of 
all  civilized  nations  in  everything  relating  to  industrial 
education.  This  is  a  question  that  concerns  us  all, — 
the  buyer,  the  seller,  the  worker,  the  poor,  and  the  rich. 
It  is  a  public  question,  for  our  arts  are  passing  into  the 
hands  of  aliens,  and  our  markets  into  the  control  of 
foreigners. 


Arthur  MacArthur. 


PRESUMPTION   OF   BRAINS. 

I  AM  not  claiming  that  the  old  schools  were  altogether 
better  than  the  new ;  but  there  was  in  them  the  one 
thing  needful  which  the  new  schools  are  liable  to  miss ; 
namely,  the  necessity  for  thought  and  individual  self- 
activity  on  the  part  of  the  child.  I  tell  you  what  it  is, 
fellow  teachers,  there  is  a  presumption  at  the  start  that 
the  child  has  brains.  It  is  safe,  also,  to  assume  that  he 
has  used  that  organ  to  some  extent  and  in  more  direc- 
tions than  one,  before  coming  to  school ;  and  he  must  be 
compelled  to  use  it  again,  and  to  use  it  constantly.  This 
presumption  will  enable  you  to  skip  many  of  the  methods, 
and  to  lighten  and  shorten  your  work.  And  in  the  rare 
instances  where  the  presumption  does  not  hold,  and  in 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  j^^ 

SO  far  as  the  presumption  does  not  hold,  you  still  have 
the  elaborate  methods  '^  adapted  to  idiots." 

And  there  is  another  presumption  of  brains  ;  namely, 
in  the  teacher.  A  teacher  with  brains  and  pupils  with 
brains  we  have  a  right  to  expect,  and  if  we  do,  we  may 
save  ourselves  some  of  the  labor.  For  example,  the 
superintendent  need  not  feel  obliged  to  mark  out  from 
day  to  day  all  that  every  teacher  in  every  school  is 
expected  to  do  with  every  child.  The  teacher  is  pre- 
sumed to  have  brains ;  the  child  is  presumed  to  have 
brains.     Let  them  be  used. 

A.  P.  Marble. 


WHICH?  A  FARCE  OR  A  TRAGEDY? 

A  POPULAR  government,  without  popular  information 
or  the  means  of  acquiring  it,  is  a  farce  or  a  tragedy,  or 
both.  Knowledge  will  govern  ignorance  ;  and  a  people 
who  mean  to  be  their  own  governors  must  arm  them- 
selves with  the  power  which  knowledge  gives. 

James  Madison. 


THE  PILGRIMS  AND  EDUCATION. 

In  1647,  when  a  few  scattered  and  feeble  settlements, 
almost  buried  in  the  depths  of  the  forest,  were  all  that 
constituted  the  colony  of  Massachusetts ;  when  the 
entire  population  consisted  of  twenty-one  thousand 
souls ;  when  the  external  means  of  the  people  were 
small,  their  dwellings  humble,  and  their  raiment  and 
subsistence  scanty  and  homely ;  when  the  whole  valu- 
ation of  all  the  colonial  estates,  both  public  and  private, 
would   hardly  equal   the  inventory  of  many  a  private 


174  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

individual  at  the  present  day ;  when  the  fierce  eye  of 
the  savage  was  nightly  seen  glaring  from  the  edge  of 
the  surrounding  wilderness,  and  no  defence  or  succor 
was  at  hand,  —  it  was  then,  amid  all  these  privations  and 
dangers,  that  the  Pilgrim  Fathers  conceived  the  magnifi- 
cent idea  of  a  free  and  universal  education  for  the 
people.  And  amid  all  their  poverty  they  stinted  them- 
selves to  a  still  scantier  pittance ;  amid  all  their  toils  they 
imposed  upon  themselves  still  more  burdensome  labors; 
amid  all  their  perils  they  braved  still  greater  dangers, 
that  they  might  find  the  time  and  the  means  to  reduce 
their  grand  conception  to  practice.  Two  divine  ideas 
filled  their  great  hearts :  their  duty  to  God  and  to  pos- 
terity. For  the  one  they  built  the  church ;  for  the 
other  they  opened  the  school.  Religion  and  knowl- 
edge !  two  attributes  of  the  same  glorious  and  eternal 
truth,  and  that  truth  the  only  one  on  which  immortal 
or  mortal  happiness  can  be  securely  founded. 

Horace  Mann. 


MOTHER  IDEAS. 


The  fundamental  data  of  knowledge,  what  Pestalozzi 
calls  "  mother  ideas,"  are  those  primal  notions  of  things 
that  come  to  us  through  the  senses.  The  child  must 
be  put  into  right  relationship  with  nature,  and  his 
knowledge  of  distance,  direction,  plants,  animals,  min- 
erals, industries,  commerce,  political  economy,  and  his- 
tory must  rest  upon  personal  observation.  Physiology 
cannot  be  successfully  taught  without  the  skeleton,  nor 
physics  and  chemistry  outside  of  the  laboratory.  The 
mind  brought  into  proper  relation  to  nature,  to  things. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  1 75 

to  objects  of  sense,  is  allured  to  activity,  gratified,  fed, 
developed,  educated.  Learning  becomes  a  perennial 
and  exhaustless  source  of  joy.  But  an  attempt  to  teach 
science  from  books  before  the  preliminary  ideas  have 
been  made  familiar  by  observation  is  not  only  futile, 
but  destructive  of  the  powers  of  the  mind.  Many  a 
child  is  ruined  for  life  by  the  deadening  process  of 
cramming  his  memory  with  words  of  whose  meaning 
he  is  ignorant.  Words  are  but  symbols,  and  are  chiefly 
valuable  as  reviving  the  memory  of  past  experiences,  or 
of  putting  into  convenient  and  orderly  shape  the  pro- 
cesses of  our  own  thinking ;  or,  at  best,  of  stimulating 
the  mind  to  put  itself,  by  its  own  energies,  into  the 
same  state  as  that  occupied  by  the  writer.  As  a  gen- 
eral law,  words  should  come  after  ideas;  the  child 
should  learn  things  before  he  learns  about  things ;  he 
should  derive  all  his  ideas  of  number  by  counting,  com- 
bining, separating,  dividing,  weighing,  and  measuring 
things ;  he  should  not  be  taught  to  read  until  he  has 
ideas  and  thoughts,  and  can  embody  them  in  sentences 
of  his  own  structure.  Books  should  supplement,  and 
not  precede,  oral  instruction.  Facts  should  precede 
principles ;  processes  come  before  rules.  Grammar  and 
rhetoric  should  always  follow  practical  language ;  litera- 
ture should  comprise  the  reading  of  the  authors,  and 
not  merely  reading  about  them ;  foreign  languages 
should  be  learned  by  use,  and  not  from  grammar. 
Geography  should,  as  far  as  possible,  be  learned  from 
travel,  and  psychology  from  introspection.  This  great 
law  of  nature  —  the  imperative  necessity  of  knowledge 
at  first  hand  — has  been  repeated  by  all  the  great  re- 
formers in  educational  methods,  — by  Montaigne,  Rous- 


176  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

seau,  Locke,  Comenius,  Pestalozzi,  and  Froebel,  —  and 
is  so  patent  as  to  command  at  once  the  assent  of  every 
thoughtful  mind ;  and  yet  it  is  ruthlessly  violated  every 
day,  nearly  everywhere,  and,  I  might  almost  say,  by 
nearly  everybody.  And  Nature  avenges  herself  by 
blinding  the  teachers  who  do  it,  and  by  stupefying  the 
minds  of  their  victims.  The  school,  which  should  be  a 
seminary,  a  place  of  seed-sowing,  becomes  a  charnel- 
house, —  the  burial  place  of  fond  hopes  and  youthful 
aspirations. 

The  meagre  results  that  often  issue  from  long  years 
of  schooling,  the  vast  number  of  pupils  that  drop  out  of 
the  lower  grades,  the  few  that  find  their  way  to  college, 
the  spirit  of  indifference  to  learning  that  pervades  so 
many  educational  institutions,  the  oft-repeated  criticism 
of  the  public-school  system  for  its  lack  of  practical  re- 
sults, the  wide-spread  agitation  in  favor  of  industrial 
training,  and  the  bitter  complaint  of  many  distinguished 
men  as  to  how  they  were  educated,  all  point  to  a  real 
defect  in  our  system  of  education.  It  is  the  part  of 
wisdom  to  locate  the  evil,  if  possible,  and  then  to  re- 
move it. 

Thomas  J.  Morgan. 

The  purpose  of  instruction  is  to  carry  forward  intel- 
ligences to  the  farthest  point  they  are  capable  of 
attaining. 

Nicole. 


\ 


CONVERSATION  A  FINE  ART. 

To  teach  how  to  talk  well  should  be  the  constant  aim 
of  both  home  and  school  training.     Conversation  should 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  lyy 

be  regarded  not  merely  as  an  art,  but  as  a  fine  art,  in- 
deed the  noblest  of  the  fine  arts ;  and  therefore  should 
be  cultivated  with  the  zest  of  the  amateur  in  painting 
and  sculpture.  Carefully  practised,  it  becomes  a  prime 
educator,  awakening  curiosity,  sharpening  perception, 
cultivating  attention,  quickening  both  the  memory  and 
imagination,  and  developing  versatility,  tact,  and  vivac- 
ity. In  view  of  the  range  and  grandeur  of  its  subjects, 
the  greatness  of  its  influence,  and  the  brilliancy  of  its 
victories,  speech  is  the  grandest  of  all  arts.  The  lead- 
ers of  men  in  every  age  have  gained  their  wide  sway  by 
this  divine  gift  of  speech.  The  greatest  triumphs  of 
truth  are- won  by  the  tongue.  Though  it  is  "  a  little 
member,"  it  justly  "boasteth  great  things." 

B.   G.  NORTHRUP. 


TWILIGHT   REGIONS. 

The  greatest  minds  have  but  a  limited  range  of  in- 
teUigence.  In  all  of  them  there  are  regions  of  twilight 
and  shadow ;  but  the  intelligence  of  the  child  is  almost 
wholly  pervaded  by  shadows ;  he  catches  glimpses  of 
but  few  rays  of  light.  So  everything  depends  on  man- 
aging these  rays,  on  increasing  them,  and  on  exposing 
to  them  whatever  we  wish  to  have  the  child  comprehend. 

NiCOI-E. 


HISTORY  AND   PRACTICAL  KNOWLEDGE. 

It  is  only  when  the  understanding  can  deal  clearly 
with  occurrences,  their  origin  and  consequences,  deduce 
the  general  from  the  particular,  and  comprehend  tlic 


178  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

spirit  of  the  nations  in  every  period,  that  history  be- 
comes anything  more  than  mere  memorizing,  and  is  a 
real  training  for  the  mind.  If  it  does  not  communicate 
a  knowledge  of  that  which  alone,  amidst  all  the  changes 
of  humanity,  is  entitled  to  honor  and  imitation,  and  of 
the  truth  that  evil,  however  much  it  may  prosper  for  a 
little  time,  ultimately  perishes,  or  even  if  it  endures  to 
posterity,  may  last  for  centuries  as  a  warning,  branded 
with  contempt ;  —  if  this  knowledge  does  not  produce  a 
pure  condition  of  the  moral  nature,  including  in  itself 
all  that  humanity  honors  and  ennobles,  and  realizing  it, 
whenever  possible,  in  deeds ;  —  and  if,  lastly,  practical 
acuteness  is  not,  from  this  knowledge  of  previous  ex- 
perience, joined  with  the  wisdom  gained,  so  far  as  is 
consistent  with  that  wisdom  :  —  then  all  historical  learn- 
ing, even  the  profoundest,  must  remain  mere  dead 
knowledge. 

NiEMEVER. 


TRAINING   OF  THE   EYE. 

The  eye  should  be  trained  to  accurate  vision  and  to 
careful  and  discriminating  observation.  How  many,  for 
the  lack  of  proper  training  of  the  senses,  "  have  eyes  but 
see  not !  "  They  live  in  a  world  of  infinite  variety  and 
beauty,  but  they  see  nothing  except  such  gross  objects 
as  are  forced  upon  their  attention.  .  .  .  Hence  it  is 
that  nature  has  no  charms  for  the  untrained  eye.  What 
a  loss  of  pleasure  to  human  life,  in  consequence  of  this 
voluntary  blindness !  Well  may  these  exclaim  with 
"the  blind  old  bard"  — 

•'  Seasons  return  ;  but  not  to  me  returns 
Day,  or  the  sweet  approach  of  eve,  or  morn." 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  j^q 

And  not  only  pleasure,  but  utility,  requires  the  train- 
ing of  the  senses.  Observation  is  an  important  source 
of  education.  The  immediate  knowledge  of  the  external 
world  comes  to  the  mind  through  the  sense  of  sight 
more  than  all  the  other  senses.  Indeed,  every  other 
sense  is  powerless  in  dealing  with  distant  objects  and 
their  relations  to  each  other.  The  cultivated  eye  alone 
sees  these  objects  as  they  are,  and  traces  their  relations 
to  the  universe  of  matter.  Accurate  observation  has 
created  the  science  of  the  material  world. 

Hiram  Orcutt. 


THE   SCIENCES   CLOSELY  RELATED. 

I  HOLD  that  to  understand  thoroughly  any  branch  of 
science,  it  is  necessary  to  know  much,  also,  of  various 
kindred  sciences.  Thus,  no  one  can  understand  chem- 
istry well,  without  knowing  something  also  of  mechani- 
cal philosophy ;  and  no  one  can  be  master  of  the 
mechanical  laws  of  nature,  without  much  knowledge  also 
of  the  chemical  laws.  Each  science  has  various  relations 
to  the  other ;  and  chemical  and  mechanical  principles 
are  often  so  intimately  blended  in  the  same  phenomenon, 
either  of  art  or  nature,  that  its  full  and  complete  expla- 
nation must  involve  both  mechanical  and  chemical  con- 
siderations. Neither  the  chemist  nor  the  natural  phi- 
losopher is  competent  alone  to  understand  the  steam 
engine.  The  development  of  the  power  of  elastic  steam 
is  chemical;  the  application  of  it  to  machinery  is  mech^ii- 
cal.  So  in  the  explanation  of  almost  any  atmospheric 
phenomenon,  as  a  tornado,  the  principles  of  both  these 
sciences  are  brought  into  requisition.     In  a  similar  man- 


l8o  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

ner,  it  is  impossible  to  gain  a  thorough  knowledge  of 
any  single  language  without  some  acquaintance  with 
kindred  tongues.  It  is  superfluous  to  say  that  no  one 
can  understand  the  philosophy  of  language  without  an 
intimate  acquaintance  with  many  languages. 

Denison  Olm  stead. 

CRAMMING. 

I  DO  not  for  a  moment  deny  that  much  is  to  be  gained 
from  the  study  of  scientific  text-books.  It  would  be 
absurd  to  do  so.  What  I  do  deny  is,  that  the  reading 
up  of  books  on  science  —  which  is,  strictly  speaking,  a 
literary  study  —  either  is,  or  can  possibly  be,  a  training 
in  scientific  method.  To  receive  facts  in  science  on 
any  other  authority  than  that  of  the  facts  themselves ; 
to  get  up  the  observations,  experiments,  and  comments 
of  others,  instead  of  observing,  experimenting,  and  com- 
menting ourselves ;  to  learn  definitions,  rules,  abstract 
propositions,  technicalities,  before  we  personally  deal 
with  the  facts  which  lead  up  to  them  ;  —  all  this,  whether 
in  literary  or  scientific  education,  —  and  especially  in  the 
latter,  —  is  of  the  essence  of  cramming,  and  is  therefore 
entirely  opposed  to  and  destructive  of  true  mental 
training  and  discipline. 

Joseph  Payne. 


TOO  DIFFICULT. 

But  why  not  study  natural  science }  The  whole  world 
is  -now  occupied  with  physical  science.  The  inquirer 
and  objector  both  shout  in  union,  "  The  child  cannot 
begin  the  study  of  nature  too  early  nor  continue  it  too 
long.     The  whole  world  is  now  ready  to  be  interested 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  i3i 

with  physics  and  chemistry,  with  all  the  varieties  of 
what  we  call  the  physical  agencies  and  their  relations 
one  to  another.  Give  your  son  and  your  daughter  the 
earliest  interest  in  physics,  and  let  them  early  become 
familiar  with  these  new  sciences  which  put  such  a  new 
face  on  the  universe  of  the  present  and  on  the  universe 
of  the  past.  Why  not } "  Why  not }  Simply  because 
the  time  to  study  physics  reflectively,  with  its  wondrous 
revelations,  with  its  perplexing  questions,  with  its  magic 
and  its  mystery,  —  the  time  has  not  come  until  the 
power  of  discrimination  and  reflection  is  fully  formed ; 
and  long  before  this  has  taken  place  the  mastery  of  the 
ancient  and  modern  languages  can  be  achieved.  Let 
natural  history  occupy  the  boy  and  the  girl,  but  let  nat- 
ural science  be  delayed.  Let  botany  and  physiology  be 
mastered  so  far  as  either  may  be  said  to  be  a  science  of 
observation.  Store  the  believing  and  gushing  mind 
with  facts,  but  do  not,  pray  do  not,  perplex  the  childish 
and  youthful  simplicity  of  your  son  and  daughter  with 
those  speculations  that  stagger  the  strongest  thinkers, 
and  force  them  to  grapple  with  either  the  new  scepti- 
cisms or  the  new  faiths  which  everywhere  obtrude  them- 
selves in  the  form  of  physical  science.  First,  give 
them  maturity  of  mind  and  the  power  to  discriminate 
and  comprehend.  Meanwhile,  while  memory  is  active 
and  imagination  is  fresh,  while  the  hopes  are  full  of 
confident  delight  for  good  in  the  future,  delay  these 
puzzling  questions  and  these  doubtful  inquiries  till  the 
mind  has  been  disciplined  to  grapple  with  them.  Noth- 
ing can  be  more  mistaken,  it  seems  to  me,  than  the  in- 
decent haste  with  which  young  persons  nowadays  are 
exercised  in  our  higher  schools  with  what   should  be 


1 82  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

called  the  great  problems  of  physical  science.  While  I 
would  have  them  delight  in  natural  history,  and  occupy 
their  minds  and  imaginations  with  these  inquiries,  and 
enjoy  the  results,  I  would  keep  back,  until  the  proper 
time  of  reflection  shall  have  come,  those  puzzling  in- 
quiries v/hich  demand  maturity  and  the  disciplined  mind 
before  they  can  be  properly  met  and  successfully  mas- 
tered. But  let  them  study  history,  and  above  all,  let 
them  breathe  the  very  atmosphere  of  ancient  life  by  the 
study  of  classical  literature.  Let  them  study  history  in 
its  dates,  its  facts,  and  its  pictures  of  the  past ;  but  for 
the  same  reason  that  I  would  delay  and  defer  the  study 
of  philosophical  or  metaphysical  physics,  I  would  keep 
them  back  from  all  these  high-sounding  words  which 
we  hear  at  every  corner  about  the  science  of  history, 
the  science  of  politics,  the  science  of  the  state,  and  even 
the  science  of  ethics  and  religion. 

Noah  Porter. 


My  method  of  learning  the  Roman  language  may 
seem  strange,  and  yet  it  is  very  true.  I  did  not  so  much 
gain  the  knowledge  of  things  by  the  words,  as  words  by 
the  knowledge  I  had  of  things. 

The  understanding  is  not  a  vessel  which  must  be 
filled,  but  firewood,  which  needs  to  be  kindled  ;  and  love 
of  learning  and  love  of  truth  are  what  should  kindle  it. 

Plutarch. 


ACTION    THE   HIGHEST   END. 

The  will  is  the  highest  faculty  of  the  mind,  and  en- 
deavor the  highest  development  of  the  will.    To  this  con- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  1 83 

elusion  we  have  come  by  stages  of  steady  progress,  and 
the  proofs  are  various  and  united  by  links  and  interlacings 
that  cannot  be  sundered  or  separated.  When  Demos- 
thenes was  asked  what  is  the  most  important  element  in 
oratory,  and  replied,  "Action,  action,  action,"  who  can  tell 
how  deep  his  meaning  was  ?  He  is  said  not  to  have  sought 
dramatic  effects  by  physical  action,  but  every  sentence 
of  his  orations  had  action  for  its  end.  If  applied  to  this 
feature  of  his  oratory,  his  reply  would  be  strikingly  per- 
tinent. But  in  the  view  of  the  will  here  set  forth,  his 
words  have  a  profounder  application  still.  Action  is 
not  only  the  end  of  oratory,  but  the  highest  end  to  be 
sought  in  every  attempt  to  develop  the  human  mind." 

F.  B.  Pai,mer. 


A  PLEA  FOR  ELECTIVES. 

Nobody  who  has  taught  both  elective  and  prescribed 
studies  need  be  told  how  the  instruction  in  the  two  cases 
differs.  With  perfunctionary  students,  a  teacher  is 
concerned  with  devices  for  forcing  his  pupils  onward. 
Teaching  becomes  a  secondary  affair ;  the  time  for  it  is 
exhausted  in  questioning  possible  shirks.  Information 
must  be  elicited,  not  imparted.  The  text-book,  with  its 
fixed  lessons,  is  a  thing  of  consequence.  It  is  the  teach- 
er's business  to  watch  his  pupils,  to  see  that  they  carry 
off  the  requisite  knowledge  ;  their  business,  then,  it  soon 
becomes  to  try  to  escape  without  it.  Between  teacher 
and  scholar  there  goes  on  an  ignoble  game  of  matching 
wits,  in  which  the  teacher  is  smart  if  he  can  catch  a  boy, 
and  the  boy  is  smart  if  he  can  know  nothing  without 
being  found  out.     Because  of  this  supposed  antagonism 


1 84  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

of  interests  American  higher  education  seldom  escapes 
an  air  of  unreality.  We  seem  to  be  at  the  opera  bouffe. 
A  boy  appears  at  the  learning  shop,  purchases  his  parcel 
of  knowledge,  and  then  tries  to  toss  it  under  the  counter 
and  dodge  out  of  the  door  before  the  shopman  can  be 
quick  enough  to  make  him  carry  off  the  goods.  Nothing 
can  cure  such  folly  except  insistence  that  pupil's  neglect 
is  not  teacher's  injury.  The  elective  system  points  out 
to  a  man  that  he  has  something  at  stake  in  a  study,  and 
so  trains  him  to  look  upon  time  squandered  as  a  personal 
loss.  Where  this  consciousness  can  be  presumed,  a 
higher  style  of  teaching  becomes  possible.  Methods 
spring  up  unlike  formal  lectures,  unlike  humdrum  reci- 
tations. The  student  acquires  —  what  he  will  need 
in  after  life  — the  power  to  look  up  a  single  subject  in 
many  books.  Theses  are  written  ;  discussions  held  ;  in 
higher  courses,  problems  of  research  supersede  defined 
tasks.  .  .  . 

But  it  would  be  unfair  to  imply  that  the  new  spirit  is 
awakened  in  students  alone.  Professors  are  themselves 
instructed.  The  obstacles  to  their  proper  work,  those 
severest  of  all  obstacles  which  come  from  defective  sym- 
pathy, are  cleared  away.  A  teacher  draws  near  his 
class,  and  learns  what  he  can  do  for  it.  Long  ago  it 
was  said  that  among  the  Gentiles — people  spiritually 
rude  —  great  ones  exercised  authority,  while  in  a  state 
of  righteousness  this  should  not  be  so ;  there  the  leader 
would  estimate  his  importance  by  his  serviceability.  It 
was  a  teacher  who  spoke,  and  he  spoke  to  teachers. 
To-day  teacher's  dangers  lie  in  the  same  direction. 
Always  dealing  with  inferiors,  isolated  from  criticism, 
by  nature  not  less  sluggish  than  others,  through  the 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


185 


honorable  passion  which  they  feel  for  their  subject 
disposed  to  set  the  private  investigation  of  it  above  its 
exposition,  teachers  are  continually  tempted  to  think  of 
a  class  as  if  it  existed  for  their  sakes  rather  than  they 
for  its.  Fasten  pupils  to  the  benches,  and  nothing 
counteracts  this  temptation  except  that  individual  con- 
science, which  in  all  of  us  is  a  faculty  that  will  well  bear 
strengthening.  It  may  be  just  to  condemn  the  dull, 
the  intolerant,  the  self-absorbed  teacher ;  but  why  not 
condemn  also  the  system  which  perpetuates  him  ? 
Nobody  likes  to  be  inefficient ;  slackness  is  largely  a 
fault  of  inadvertence.  That  system  is  good  which 
makes  inadvertence  difficult  and  opens  the  way  for  a 
teacher  to  discover  whether  his  instructions  hit.  Give 
students  choice,  and  a  professor  gets  the  power  to  see 
himself  as  others  see  him.  .  .  .  There  is,  therefore,  in  the 
new  method  a  self-regulating  adjustment.  Teacher  and 
taught  are  put  on  their  good  behavior.  A  spirit  of 
faithfulness  is  infused  into  both,  and  by  that  very  fact 
the  friendliest  relation  is  estabUshed  between  them. 

G.  H.  Palmer. 

ELECTIVES  AND  NATURAL  DEFICIENCY. 
In  the  next  place  the  elective  system  is  the  best  pos- 
sible preventive  and  cure  for  poor  scholarship.  I  will 
not  say  that  it  is  a  specific.  Our  latest  school  of  medi- 
cine denies  that  there  are  specifics.  There  certainly  are 
none  for  deficient  brain  power,  for  native  levity  of  intel- 
lect, or  for  a  mind  enfeebled  by  moral  depravity.  But 
there  are  not  a  few  minds,  of  respectable,  some  of  supe- 
rior, ability,  that  lack  capacity  in  some  one  direction.  I 
have  known  persons  susceptible  of  high  culture,  in  one 


1 86  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

case  a  youth  of  surpassing  genius,  who  could  not  com- 
prehend the  theorems  of  soHd  geometry,  or  even  the 
formulas  of  plane  trigonometry.  It  is  not  uncommon 
for  a  young  man  who  has  in  his  boyhood  known  no  lan- 
guage but  his  own,  to  show  what  seems  stupidity  in  the 
study  of  the  ancient  languages,  and  yet  to  manifest  a 
superior  aptitude  for  mathematics  or  philosophy.  Now, 
persistent  failure  and  inferiority  in  any  one  department 
are  very  apt  to  break  down  a  student's  spirit,  to  destroy 
his  enterprise,  to  quench  his  ambition,  and  thus  to  reduce 
him  in  the  branches  in  which  he  might  do  well  to  the 
standard  established  by  his  incompetency  in  those  in 
which  he  cannot  do  but  ill.  Far  better  is  it  that  he  be 
relieved  as  early  as  possible  from  the  need  of  attempting 
that  in  which  he  cannot  excel.  The  cases  of  utter  and 
invincible  distaste  or  indifference  for  certain  departments 
are  probably  much  more  numerous  than  those  of  native 
incapacity,  and  they  crave  the  same  treatment.  .  .  .  Let 
a  young  man  choose  the  branches  that  he  will  study  ; 
you  can  rely  upon  his  putting  into  them  the  best  work 
that  he  can  do. 

A.  P.  Pea  BODY. 


KINDLE  YOUR  OWN  FIRE. 

As  it  would  be  with  a  man  who,  going  to  his  neigh- 
bor's to  borrow  fire,  and  finding  there  a  great  and  bright 
fire,  should  sit  down  to  warm  himself  and  forget  to  go 
home,  so  is  it  with  the  one  who  comes  to  another  to 
learn,  if  he  does  not  think  himself  obliged  to  kindle  his 
own  fire  within,  and  influence  his  own  mind,  but  con- 
tinues sitting  by  his  master  as  if  he  were  enchanted, 
delighted  by  hearing. 

Plutarch, 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  1 87 

EXCEPTIONS   TO   THE   RULE. 

There  will  always  be  men  whom  nothing  can  keep 
uneducated,  men  like  Franklin  and  Bowditch,  who  can 
break  down  every  obstacle ;  men  gifted  with  such  te- 
nacity of  resolution,  such  vigor  of  thought,  such  power 
of  self-control,  they  live  on  difficulties,  and  seem  strong- 
est when  fed  most  abundantly  with  that  rugged  fare; 
men  that  go  forth  strong  as  the  sun  and  as  lonely,  nor 
brook  to  take  assistance  from  the  world  of  men.  For 
such  no  provision  is  needed.  They  fight  their  own  bat- 
tles, for  they  are  born  fully  armed,  terrible  from  their 
very  beginning.  To  them  difficulty  is  nothing.  Poverty 
but  makes  them  watchful.  Shut  out  from  books  and 
teachers,  they  have  instructors  in  the  birds  and  beasts, 
and  whole  Vatican  libraries  in  the  trees  and  stones. 
They  fear  no  discouragement.  They  go  the  errand  God 
sent  them,  trusting  in  him  to  bless  the  gift  he  gave. 
They  beat  the  mountain  of  difficulty  into  dust,  and  get 
the  gem  it  could  not  hide  from  an  eye  piercing  as  Argus. 
But  these  men  are  rare,  — exceptions  to  the  rule  ;  strong 
souls  in  much-enduring  flesh. 

Theodore  Parker. 


INTEREST   INDISPENSABLE. 

An  interest  in  study  is  the  first  thing  which  a  teacher 
should  endeavor  to  excite  and  keep  alive.  There  are 
scarcely  any  circumstances  in  which  a  want  of  applica- 
tion in  children  does  not  proceed  from  a  want  of  inter- 
est ;  and  there  are  perhaps  none  in  which  the  want  of 
interest  does  not  originate  in  the  mode  of  teaching 
adopted  by  the  teacher.     I  would  go  so  far  as  to  lay  it 


1 88  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

down  as  a  rule  that  whenever  children  are  inattentive 
and  apparently  take  no  interest  in  a  lesson,  the  teacher 
should  always  first  look  to  himself  for  the  reason.  .  .  . 
Could  we  conceive  the  indescribable  tedium  which  must 
oppress  the  young  mind  while  the  weary  hours  are 
slowly  passing  away  one  after  another  in  occupations 
which  it  can  neither  relish  nor  understand  ;  could  we 
remember  the  like  scenes  which  our  own  childhood  has 
passed  through,  we  should  no  longer  be  surprised  at  the 
remissness  of  the  schoolboy  "creeping  like  snail  unwill- 
ingly to  school."  .  .  . 

We  must  adopt  a  better  mode  of  instruction,  by 
which  the  children  are  less  left  to  themselves,  less 
thrown  upon  the  unwelcome  employment  of  passive 
listening,  less  harshly  treated  for  little  excusable  fail- 
ings ;  but  more  roused  by  questions,  animated  by  illus- 
trations, interested  and  won  by  kindness. 

There  is  a  most  remarkable  reciprocal  action  between 
the  interest  which  the  teacher  takes  and  that  which  he 
communicates  to  his  pupils.  If  he  is  not  with  his  whole 
mind  present  at  the  subject,  if  he  does  not  care  whether 
he  is  understood  or  not,  whether  his  manner  is  liked  or 
not,  he  will  alienate  the  affections  of  his  pupils,  and 
render  them  indifferent  to  what  he  says.  But  real 
interest  taken  in  the  task  of  instruction,  kind  words 
and  kinder  feelings,  the  very  expression  of  the  features 
and  the  glance  of  the  eye,  are  never  lost  upon 
children.  pestalozzi. 

Man  cannot  propose  a  higher  and  holier  object  for  his 
study  than  education  and  all  that  pertains  to  education. 

Plato. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


A  HAPPY   SCHOOL. 


189 


The  children  very  soon  felt  that  there  existed  in  them 
forces  which  they  did  not  know ;  and  in  particular, 
they  acquired  a  general  sentiment  of  order  and  beauty. 
They  were  self-conscious  ;  and  the  impression  of  weari- 
ness which  habitually  reigns  in  schools  vanished  like  a 
shadow  from  my  class-room.  They  willed,  they  had 
power,  they  persevered,  they  succeeded,  and  they  were 
happy.  They  were  not  scholars  who  were  learning, 
but  children  who  felt  unknown  forces  awakening  within 
them,  and  who  understood  where  these  forces  could  and 
would  lead  them ;  and  this  feeling  gave  elevation  to 
their  mind  and  heart. 

Pestalozzi. 


To  educate  children  properly  ought  to  be  for  the 
teacher  only  the  second  part  of  his  undertaking.  The 
first  and  the  most  difficult  is  to  perfect  himself. 

Madame  Pape-Carpentier. 


A  WORK  FOR  ETERNITY. 

Many  fine  things  have  been  said  concerning  the  mis- 
sion of  teachers ;  but  after  all  that  has  been  said,  in  all 
ages,  upon  the  subject,  more  than  justice  has  not  been 
and  never  can  be  done  to  the  theme.  We  may  say 
with  Channing,  that  there  is  no  office  higher  than  that 
of  a  teacher  of  youth ;  for  there  is  nothing  on  earth  so 
precious  as  the  mind,  soul,  character,  of  the  child ;  or, 
in  the  language  of  Everett,  that  the  office  of  the  teacher, 
in  forming  the  minds  and  hearts  of  the  young,  and  train- 
ing up  those  who  are  to  take  our  places  in  life,  is  all-im- 


IQO  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

portant ;  or,  in  the  words  of  President  Humphrey,  that 
the  schoolmaster  literally  speaks,  writes,  teaches,  paints 
for  eternity.  His  pupils  are  immortal  beings,  whose 
minds  are  as  clay  to  the  seal  under  his  hand.  But  such 
generalities,  however  just  and  true,  fail  to  convey  to 
our  minds  an  adequate  or  vivid  conception,  either  of  the 
actual  or  possible  results  of  the  teacher's  work. 

John  D.  Philbrick. 


VALUE   OF   EDUCATIONAL   HISTORY. 

The  history  of  education,  —  Chinese,  Persian,  Egyp- 
tian, Hindoo,  Jewish,  Greek,  Roman,  Mediaeval,  French, 
German,  English,  Italian,  —  presents  a  field  of  almost 
infinite  extent,  too  formidable  to  be  contemplated  with 
equanimity ;  and  yet  there  is  not,  I  venture  to  say,  any 
knowledge  of  a  higher  practical  value  to  the  educators 
of  the  day  than  this.  The  great  need  of  the  hour,  it 
seems  to  me,  is  to  ascertain  what  has  been  done  in  the 
line  of  educational  effort,  what  plans  have  succeeded 
and  what  have  failed,  and  the  conditions  under  which 
success  or  failure  has  come.  General  history  that  re- 
cords the  instinctive  or  impulsive  acts  of  men  has  a 
high  order  of  value  ;  but  of  a  still  higher  value  must  be 
educational  history  that  records  the  deliberate  plans  of 
the  wisest  and  the  best  for  the  good  of  their  kind. 

William  H.  Payne. 


EARLY   LINGUISTIC   TRAINING. 

But  why  not  employ  the  time  on  the  mathematics } 
The  answer  to  that  inquiry  ...  is  simply  this :  that 
the  time  for  the  efficient  and  successful  study  of  the 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  I91 

mathematics  does  not  come  to  boys  and  girls,  as  they 
ordinarily  present  themselves,  until  after  the  time  has 
elapsed  when  the  elements  of  Latin  and  Greek  may  be 
mastered.  The  premature  study  of  the  mathematics  in 
algebra  and  geometry  is  not  serviceable  to  the  mind.  It 
should  be  delayed  till  the  mathematical  powers  have 
been  developed  and  can  be  exercised  with  energy  and 
satisfaction.  The  time  before  this  may  be  best  em- 
ployed in  acquiring  the  elements  of  one  or  two  modern 
languages.  The  linguistic  comes  before  the  reflective 
period.  The  mastery  of  language,  both  modern  and 
ancient,  comes  long  before  the  mathematical  sense,  if 
I  may  so  express  myself,  is  developed.  Let  algebra 
and  geometry,  then,  be  deferred  until  the  time  for  the 
successful  and  satisfactory  pursuit  of  the  reflective  and 
intellectual  studies  is  fully  reached. 

Noah  Porter. 


THE  STUDY  OF  PHYSIOLOGY. 

I  WOULD  therefore  have  physiology  taught  to  all,  as  a 
study  of  God's  designs  and  purposes  achieved  ;  as  a 
science  for  which  our  natural  desire  after  the  knowledge 
of  final  causes  seems  to  have  been  destined ;  a  science 
in  which  that  desire,  though  it  were  infinite,  might  be 
satisfied  ;  and  in  which,  as  with  perfect  models  of  benefi- 
cence and  wisdom,  our  own  faculties  of  design  may  be 
instructed.  I  would  not  have  its  teaching  limited  to  a 
bare  declaration  of  the  use  and  exact  fitness  of  each 
part  or  organ  of  the  body.  This,  indeed,  should  not  be 
omitted ;  for  there  are  noble  truths  in  the  simplest 
demonstrations  of  the  fitness  of  parts  for  their  simplest 


192  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

purposes,  and  no  study  has  been  made  more  attractive 
than  this  by  the  ingenuity,  the  acuteness,  and  eloquence 
of  its  teachers.  But  I  would  go  beyond  this,  and  striv- 
ing, as  I  said  before,  to  teach  ge7teral  truths  as  well  as 
the  details  of  science,  I  would  try  to  lead  the  mind  to 
the  contemplation  of  those  general  designs,  from  which 
it  might  gather  the  best  lessons  for  its  own  guidance. 

James  Paget. 


READING  AND   RE-READING. 

We  read  at  once  too  much  and  too  little.  Multum, 
non  multa.  I  have  tried  to  say  in  many  words  what  the 
proverb  says  in  three.  Without  a  pedantic  exclusion  of 
lesser  and  lighter  matters,  let  a  man  or  a  woman  who 
wishes  to  claim  her  natural  mental  rights  and  position 
read  mainly  the  best  books,  and  begin  again  when  the 
series  is  ended.  Life  is  not  long  ;  but  the  available  list 
is  briefer  still.  Putting  aside  the  books  which  give 
special  information  or  discuss  points  of  theory,  a  few 
shelves  would  hold  all  the  modern  master-works ;  how 
few  the  ancient !  Yet  these  are  enough.  For  a  good 
book  not  only  puts  the  thoughts  of  its  age  in  the  sweet- 
est and  highest  form,  but  includes  by  a  natural  implica- 
tion the  thousand  lesser  works  contemporary.  And 
these  again  we  read  with  far  more  gain  and  amusement 
through  familiarity  with  masterpieces.  Knowledge  of 
these  supplies  taste  and  judgment  and  standards  for 
the  pleasant  work  of  comparison.  It  is  books  thus  read 
which  "  gives  growth  to  youth  and  pleasure  to  age,  de- 
light at  home,  make  the  night  go  by,  and  are  friends  for 
the  road  and  the  country."      How  modern  the  words 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 


193 


seem !     Yet  they  tell  that  one  thousand  nine  hundred 
years  ago  there  were  men  who  comprehended  reading. 

E.  T.  Palgrave. 


A  GOOD  education  is  that  which  gives  to  the  body  and 
to  the  soul  all  the'  beauty  and  all  the  perfection  of  which 
they  are  capable. 


Plato. 


THE  HEAD  AND  THE  HAND. 

A  Greek  proverb  says  :  "A  mob  has  no  brains  "  ;  the 
meaning  doubtless  being  either  that  the  only  brain  con- 
cerned is  that  of  the  leader,  or  that  the  units  composing 
the  mob  have  only  one  brain  in  common.  In  either 
case,  disintegration  will  come  the  moment  each  of  these 
units  can  determine  its  own  motive,  instead  of  being 
controlled  by  a  motive  of  another's  imposition.  For 
example,  in  our  politics  there  is  a  large  mobile  element, 
the  purchasable  factor  that  has  as  little  self-determining 
power  as  the  ballast  of  a  sailing  vessel.  Could  each  of 
these  "  electors  "  be  given  the  power  and  the  will  to  do 
his  own  thinking,  the  problem  of  political  education 
would  be  solved.  Which  is  better  for  the  citizen,  the 
practical  drill  of  the  "  primaries,"  or  the  serious  reading 
of  the  "  Republic  "  and  the  "  Laws  "  .^  It  is  no  paradox 
to  say  that  we  should  learn  to  swim,  i.e.^  form  an  idea, 
pattern,  or  theory  of  swimming,  before  we  plunge  into 
the  water,  to  the  end  that  we  may  safely  and  thoroughly 
learn  the  art  of  swimming.  In  other  words,  we  should 
knowy  to  the  end  that  we  may  do.  First  the  head  and 
then  the  hand ;  finally,  the  hand  inspired  and  guided  by 


194 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


the  head.  In  going  from  the  old  faith  in  the  potency 
of  ideas  and  ideals,  we  have  degenerated.  We  are  fol- 
lowing false  gods. 


William  H.  Payne. 


Deficiencies  in  true  education  are  the  source  of  de- 
lusion and  of  all  transgressions,  the  chief  cause  of 
violations  of  the  laws  of  the  mind. 


Philo. 


WE   LEARN  TO  DO   BY  DOING. 

There  is  great  outcry  against  our  schools  and  col- 
leges, caused  by  the  suspicion  that  they  educate  children 
to  be  above  manual  labor.  This  suspicion  is  founded 
upon  fact,  I  am  sorry  to  say ;  but  the  statement  of  the 
fact  is  not  correct.  Children  are  educated  below  manual 
labor.  The  vague,  meaningless  things  they  learn  are 
not  adapted  to  real  work ;  no  effectual  habits  of  labor 
are  formed  by  rote-learning.  The  student's  desire  is 
too  often,  when  he  leaves  college,  to  get  a  living  by 
means  of  empty  words.  The  world  has  little  or  no  use 
for  such  rubbish.  That  man  should  gain  his  bread  by 
the  sweat  of  his  brow  is  a  curse  changed  to  the  highest 
possible  blessing.  The  clergyman,  the  lawyer,  the 
physician,  the  teacher,  need  the  benefit  of  an  early  train- 
ing in  manual  labor  quite  as  much  as  the  man  who  is 
to  labor  with  his  hands  all  his  life.  Manual  labor  is  the 
foundation  of  clear  thinking,  sound  imagination,  and 
good  health.  There  should  be  no  real  difference  be- 
tween the  methods  of  our  common  schools  and  the 
methods  of  training  in  manual-labor  schools.      A  great 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  1 95 

mistake  has  been  made  in  separating  them.  All  school 
work  should  be  real  work.  We  learn  to  do  by  doing. 
"Satan  finds  some  mischief  still  for  idle  hands  to  dp." 
The  direct  influence  of  real  work  is  to  absorb  the  atten- 
tion in  the  things  to  be  done,  leaving  no  room  in  the 
consciousness  for  idleness  and  its  consequent  vices. 
Out  of  real  work  the  child  develops  a  motive  that 
directs  his  life  work.  Doing  work  thoroughly  has  a 
great  moral  influence.  One  piece  of  work  well  done, 
one  subject  well  mastered,  makes  the  mind  far  stronger 
and  better  than  a  smattering  of  all  the  branches  taught 
in  our  schools.  School  work  and  manual  labor  have 
been  for  a  long  time  divorced  ;  I  predict  that  the  time 
is  fast  coming  .when  they  will  be  joined  in  indissoluble 
bonds.  The  time,  too,  is  coming,  when  ministers  will 
urge  upon  their  hearers  the  great  importance  of  manual 
labor  as  a  means  of  spiritual  growth.  At  no  distant 
date  industrial  rooms  will  become  an  indispensable  part 
of  every  good  school ;  the  work  of  the  head  and  skill  of 
the  hand  will  be  joined,  in  class-room  and  workshop,  into 
one  comprehensive  method  of  developing  harmoniously 
the  powers  of  body,  mind,  and  soul.  If  you  would  de- 
velop morality  in  the  child,  train  him  to  work. 

Francis  W.  Parker. 


EXPERIMENT  AND  TRANSITION. 

There  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  educational  world 
is  in  a  period  of  rapid  transition.  Correct  views  of  the 
nature  and  end  of  education  are  becoming  prevalent ; 
and    in  order   that  educational    methods  may  have  a 


196  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

scientific  basis,  the  physical  and  mental  constitution  of 
man  is  being  subjected  anew  to  careful  investigation. 
The  laws  governing  human  development  have  been 
largely  ascertained,  and  now  give  direction  to  our  best 
teaching.  The  work  of  education  is  no  longer  left  to 
novices  destitute  of  any  training,  except  an  acquaintance 
with  the  defective  methods  by  which  they  were  them- 
selves instructed.  Teaching  is  being  elevated  into  a 
profession,  for  which  intelligence  and  training  are  recog- 
nized as  necessary.  There  is  a  breaking  away  from 
traditional  views  and  customs.  Human  reason,  un- 
fettered by  tradition  or  the  dicta  of  authority,  is  every- 
where proving  all  things,  and  holding  fast  only  that 
which  is  good.  The  present  is  an  age  of  experiment 
and  investigation.  Able  minds  in  all  Christian  lands  are 
engaged  upon  educational  problems.  While  all  this 
leaves  the  educational  world  in  an  unsettled  condition, 
it  promises  well  for  the  future.  Within  the  past  few 
decades,  truth  has  made  large  conquests  in  the  domain 
of  education.  And  as  we  may  well  judge,  both  from 
the  lessons  of  the  past  and  the  tendencies  of  the  present, 
there  will  come  forth  from  this  struggle  an  education 
firmly  established  on  a  scientific  basis,  and  better  ad- 
justed to  the  conditions  of  modern  life. 

F.  v.  N.  Painter. 


FREEDOM,   NOT   FORCE. 

A  FREE  mind  ought  to  learn  nothing  as  a  slave.  The 
lesson  that  is  made  to  enter  the  mind  by  force  will  not 
remain  there.  Then  use  no  violence  towards  children ; 
the  rather,  cause  them  to  learn  while  playing. 

Plato. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


197 


Although  one  man  may  possess  more  capacity  than 
another,  yet  none  can  be  found  who  cannot  by  educa- 
tion be  improved  at  all. 

QuiNnuAN. 


THE  TEACHING  OF  THE  JESUITS. 

The  object  which  the  Jesuits  proposed  in  their  teach- 
ing was  not  the  highest  object.  They  did  not  aim  at 
developing  all  the  faculties  of  their  pupils,  but  merely 
the  receptive  and  reproductive  faculties.  When  a 
young  man  had  acquired  a  thorough  mastery  of  the 
Latin  language  for  all  purposes,  when  he  was  well 
versed  in  the  theological  and  philosophical  opinions  of 
his  preceptors,  when  he  was  skilful  in  dispute,  and  could 
make  a  brilliant  display  from  the  resources  of  a  well- 
stored  memory,  he  had  reached  the  highest  point  to 
which  the  Jesuits  sought  to  lead  him.  Originality  and 
independence  of  mind,  love  of  truth  for  its  own  sake, 
the  power  of  reflecting  and  of  forming  correct  judg- 
ments, were  not  merely  neglected,  —  they  were  sup- 
pressed in  the  Jesuits'  system.  But  in  what  they 
attempted  they  were  eminently  successful,  and  their 
success  went  a  long  way  toward  securing  their  popu- 
larity. 

Robert  Herbert  Quick. 


RATICH   AND  ASCHAM   COMPARED. 

When  we  compare  Ratich's  method  with  that  of 
Ascham,  we  find  that  they  have  much  in  common. 
Ratich  began  the  study  of  a  language  with  one  book, 
which  he  worked  over  with  the  pupil  a  great  many 
times.     Ascham  did  the  same.     Each  lecture,  he  says, 


198  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

would,  according  to  his  plan,  be  gone  over  a  dozen  times 
at  least.  Both  construed  to  the  pupil,  instead  of  requir- 
ing him  to  make  out  the  sense  for  himself.-  Both  taught 
grammar,  not  independently,  but  in  connection  with  the 
model  book.  So  far  as  the  two  methods  differed,  I  have 
no  hesitation  in  pronouncing  Ascham's  the  better.  It 
gave  the  pupil  more  to  do,  and  contained  the  very  im- 
portant element,  — writing.  By  this  means  there  was  a 
chance  of  the  interest  of  the  pupil  surviving  the  constant 
repetition ;  but  Ratich's  pupils  must  have  been  bored 
to  death.  His  plan  of  making  them  familiar  with  the 
translation  first  was  subsequently  advocated  by  Come- 
nius,  and  may  have  advantages ;  but  in  effect  the  pupil 
would  be  tired  of  the  play  before  he  began  to  translate 
it.  Then  Ratich's  plan  of  going  through  and  through 
seems  very  inferior  to  that  of  thoroughly  mastering  one 
lesson  before  going  on  to  the  next.  I  should  say  that 
whatever  merit  there  was  in  Ratich's  plan  lay  in  its 
insisting  on  complete  knowledge  of  a  single  book,  and 
that  this  knowledge  would  be  much  better  attained  by 
Ascham's  practice  of  double  translation. 

Robert  Herbert  Quick. 

PHILIP'S    TEACHER. 

Would  Philip,  king  of  Macedonia,  have  wished  the 
first  principles  of  learning  to  be  communicated  to  his 
son  Alexander,  by  Aristotle,  the  greatest  philosopher 
of  that  age,  or  would  Aristotle  have  undertaken  that 
office,  if  they  had  not  both  thought  that  the  first  rudi- 
ments of  instruction  are  best  treated  by  the  most  ac- 
complished teacher,  and  have  an  influence  on  the  whole 
course.^  ^  quintiuan. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  I99 

Said  a  king  to  his  son  :  "Be  diligent  in  learning  all 
arts,  in  acquiring  all  manner  of  knowledge.  If  you 
come  to  need,  then  they  will  be  your  capital ;  if  you  do 
not,  they  will  always  be  accomplishments." 

RUBCKERT. 


ENRICHING    THE    MIND. 

The  mind  is  but  a  barren  soil ;  a  soil  which  is  soon 
exhausted,  and  will  produce  no  crop,  or  only  one,  unless 
it  be  continually  fertilized  and  enriched  with  foreign 
matter. 

When  we  have  had  continually  before  us  the  great 
works  of  art  to  impregnate  our  minds  with  ideas,  we 
are  then,  and  not  till  then,  fit  to  produce  something  of 
the  same  species.  We  behold  all  about  us  with  the 
eyes  of  those  penetrating  observers  whose  works  we 
contemplate  ;  and  our  minds,  accustomed  to  think  the 
thoughts  of  the  noblest  and  brightest  intellects,  are 
prepared  for  the  discovery  and  selection  of  all  that  is 
great  and  noble  in  nature.  The  greatest  natural  genius 
cannot  subsist  on  its  own  stock  ;  he  who  resolves  never 
to  ransack  any  mind  but  his  own  will  be  soon  reduced 
from  mere  barrenness  to  the  poorest  of  all  imitations ; 
he  will  be  obliged  to  imitate  himself,  and  to  repeat  what 
he  has  before  often  repeated.  When  we  know  the  sub- 
ject designed  by  such  men,  it  will  never  be  difficult  to 
guess  what  kind  of  work  is  to  be  produced. 

A  MIND  enriched  by  an  assemblage  of  all  the  treas- 
ures of  ancient  and  modern  art  will  be  more  elevated 
and  fruitful  in  resources,  in  proportion  to  the  number 


200  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

of  ideas  which  have  been  carefully  collected  and  thor- 
oughly digested.  There  can  be  no  doubt  but  that  he 
who  has  the  most  materials  has  the  greatest  means  of 
invention  ;  and  if  he  has  not  the  power  of  using  them, 
it  must  proceed  from  a  feebleness  of  intellect ;  or  from 
the  confused  manner  in  which  those  collections  have 
been  laid  up  in  his  mind.  The  addition  of  other  men's 
judgment  is  so  far  from  weakening  our  own,  as  is  the 
opinion  of  many,  that  it  will  fashion  and  consolidate 
those  ideas  of  excellence  which  lay  in  embryo,  feeble, 
ill-shaped,  and  confused,  but  which  are  finished  and  put 
in  order  by  the  authority  and  practice  of  those  whose 
works  may  be  said  to  have  been  consecrated  by  having 
stood  the  test  of  ages. 

The  mind,  or  genius,  has  been  compared  to  a  spark  of 
fire,  which  is  smothered  by  a  heap  of  fuel,  and  prevented 
from  blazing  into  a  flame.  This  simile,  which  is  made 
use  of  by  the  younger  Pliny,  may  be  easily  mistaken  for 
argument  or  proof.  But  there  is  no  danger  of  the 
mind's  being  overburthened  with  knowledge,  or  the 
genius  extinguished  by  any  addition  of  images  ;  on  the 
contrary,  these  acquisitions  may  as  well,  perhaps  better, 
be  compared — if  comparisons  signified  anything  in  rea- 
soning—  to  the  supply  of  living  embers,  which  will  con- 
tribute to  strengthen  the  spark  that,  without  the  asso- 
ciation of  more  fuel,  would  have  died  away.  The  truth 
is,  he  whose  feebleness  is  such  as  to  make  other  men's 
thoughts  an  incumbrance  to  him,  can  have  no  very  great 
strength  of  mind  or  genius  of  his  own  to  be  destroyed, 
so  that  not  much  harm  will  be  done  at  worst. 

Sir  Joshua  Reynolds. 


J 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  20I 

We  cannot  imagine  a  complete  education  of  man 
without  music.  It  is  the  gymnastic  of  the  affections. 
In  suitable  connection  with  exercise,  it  is  necessary  to 
keep  body  and  soul  in  health. 

Jean  Paul  Richter. 


THINGS,   NOT  WORDS. 

Do  not  treat  the  child  to  discourses  which  he  cannot 
understand :  no  descriptions,  no  eloquence,  no  figures 
of  speech.  Be  content  to  present  to  him  appropriate 
objects.  Let  us  transform  our  sensations  into  ideas. 
But  let  us  not  jump  at  once  from  sensible  objects  to 
intellectual  objects.  Let  us  always  proceed  slowly  from 
one  sensible  notion  to  another.  In  general,  let  us  never 
substitute  the  sign  for  the  thing,  except  when  it  is  im- 
possible for  us  to  show  the  thing.  I  have  no  love  what- 
ever for  explanations  and  talk.  Things !  things !  I 
shall  never  tire  of  saying  that  we  ascribe  too  much 
importance  to  words. 

J.  J.  Rousseau. 


-    .  MAN  AND  NATURE. 

As  to  the  knowledge  of  the  facts  of  nature,  I  would 
have  you  devote  yourself  to  them  with  great  care,  so 
that  there  shall  be  neither  sea,  river,  nor  fountain  whose 
fish  you  do  not  know.  All  the  birds  of  the  air ;  all  the 
trees,  shrubs,  and  fruits  of  the  forests ;  all  the  grasses  of 
the  earth ;  all  the  metals  concealed  in  the  depths  of  the 
abysses,  the  precious  stones  of  the  entire  East  and 
S^th,  —  none  of  these  should  be  unknown  to  you.  By 
frequent  dissections,  acquire  a  knowledge  of  the  other 


202  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

world,   which  is   man.     In   a  word,  I  point  out  a  new 
world  of  knowledge. 

Francois  Rabelais. 


A  HARD   MODE   OF   THOUGHT. 

Natural  science,  when  its  pursuit  is  one-sided,  like 
every  other  activity  so  pursued,  narrows  the  field  of 
view.  Natural  science,  under  such  circumstances,  con- 
fines the  glance  to  that  which  lies  immediately  at  hand 
and  within  reach,  to  what  offers  itself  as  the  immediate 
result  of  sense-perception  with  apparently  unconditional 
certainty.  It  turns  the  mind  aside  from  more  general, 
less  certain  observations,  and  disaccustoms  it  to  exer- 
cise itself  in  the  realm  of  the  quantitatively  indetermin- 
able. In  a  certain  sense,  we  extol  this  as  an  invalu- 
able virtue  of  science ;  but  where  it  is  exclusively 
dominant,  the  mind  is  apt  to  grow  poor  in  ideas,  the 
imagination  in  pictures,  the  soul  in  sensitiveness,  and 
the  result  is  a  narrow,  dry,  and  hard  mode  of  thought 
deserted  by  the  Muses  and  the  Graces. 

E.  Du  Bois-Reymond. 


I 


LEARNING  WITH  EFFORT. 

We  acquire  without  doubt  notions  more  clear  and 
certain  of  things  we  thus  learn  of  ourselves  than  of 
those  we  are  taught  by  others.  Another  advantage 
also  resulting  from  this  method  is,  that  we  do  not 
accustom  ourselves  to  a  servile  submission  to  the 
authority  of  others,  but  by  exercising  our  reason, 
grow  every  day  more  ingenious  in  the  discovery  ^f 
the  relations  of  things,  in  connecting  our  ideas,  and 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  203 

in  the  contrivance  of  machines ;  whereas,  by  adopting 
those  which  are  put  into  our  hands,  our  invention  grows 
dull  and  indifferent,  as  the  man  who  never  dresses  him- 
self, but  is  served  in  everything  by  his  servants,  and 
drawn  about  everywhere  by  his  horses,  loses  by  degrees 
the  activity  and  use  of  his  limbs.  Boileau  boasted  that 
he  had  taught  Racine  to  rhyme  with  difficulty.  Among 
the  many  admirable  methods  taken  to  abridge  the  study 
of  the  sciences,  we  we  are  in  great  want  of  one  to  make 
us  learn  them  with  effort. 

J.  J.  Rousseau. 


TALENT  AND  GENIUS. 

Mediocrity  characterizes  the  great  mass  of  intelli- 
gences that  are  merely  mechanical,  and  that  wait  for 
external  impulse  as  to  what  direction  their  endeavors 
shall  take.  Not  without  truth,  perhaps,  may  we  hypo- 
thetically  presuppose  a  special  talent  in  each  individual ; 
but  this  special  talent  in  many  men  never  makes  its 
appearance,  because  under  the  circumstances  in  which 
it  finds  itself  placed,  it  fails  to  find  the  exciting  occa- 
sion which  shall  give  them  the  knowledge  of  its  exist- 
ence. The  majority  of  mankind  are  contented  with  the 
mechanical  impulse  which  makes  them  something,  and 
impresses  upon  them  certain  characteristics.  Talent 
shows  itself  by  means  of  the  confidence  in  its  own 
especial  productive  possibility,  which  manifests  itself 
as  an  inclination,  or  as  a  strong  impulse,  to  occupy 
itself  with  the  special  object  which  constitutes  the  object 
of  its  ability.  Education  has  no  difficulty  in  dealing 
with   mechanical    natures,   because   their    passivity   is 


204  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

only  too  ready  to  follow  prescribed  patterns.  It  is 
more  difficult  to  manage  talent,  because  it  lies  between 
mediocrity  and  genius,  and  is  therefore  uncertain,  and 
not  only  unequal  to  itself,  but  also  is  tossed  now  too 
low,  now  too  high ;  is  by  turns  despondent  and  over- 
excited. The  general  maxim  for  dealing  with  it  is  to 
spare  it  no  difficulty  that  lies  in  the  subject  to  which  its 
efforts  are  directed.  Genius  must  be  treated  much  in 
the  same  way  as  talent.  The  difference  consists  only 
in  this :  that  genius,  with  a  premonition  of  its  creative 
power,  usually  manifests  its  decision  with  less  doubt  for 
a  special  province  of  activity,  and,  with  a  more  intense 
thirst  for  culture,  subjects  itself  more  willingly  to  the 
demands  of  instruction.  Genius  is  in  its  nature  the 
purest  self-determination,  in  that  it  feels  in  its  own 
inner  existence  the  necessity  which  exists  in  the  object 
to  which  it  devotes  itself;  it  lives,  as  it  were,  in  its 
object.  But  it  can  create  no  valid  place  for  the  new 
idea,  which  is  in  it  already  immediately  and  subjec- 
tively, if  it  has  not  united  itself  to  the  already  existing 
culture  as  its  objective  presupposition ;  on  this  ground 
it  thankfully  receives  instruction. 

JoHANN  Karl  Friedrich  Rosenkravz. 


ON  TEACHING  MATHEMATICS. 

What  we  contend  for,  therefore,  is  that  the  teacher 
of  mathematics  should  himself  study  them  not  exclu- 
sively, but  in  their  relation  to  philosophy,  to  logic,  to 
the  arts,  and  to  history.  In  no  other  way  can  he  have 
the  materials,  sphere,  and  nature  of  mathematical  rea- 
soning  so   distinctly  and  sharply  defined   in   his   own 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


205 


mind  as  not  to  confound  it  in  the  class-room  with  other 
departments  of  education.  We  contend,  further,  that 
in  teaching  he  should  not  presume  that  his  pupils,  even 
the  best  of  them,  will  see  all  the  points  in  which  this 
science  touches  other  sciences  and  the  arts.  Unaided, 
very  few  indeed  will  discover  any  relation  between 
mathematical  formulas  and  logical  forms  of  thought; 
between  the  science  of  optics  and  the  various  arts 
founded  upon  it.  .  .  .  Five  minutes'  sharp  discussion, 
here  and  there,  by  a  professor  whose  mind  is  full  of 
such  thoughts  as  we  have  ventured  to  suggest,  will  rob 
the  mathematical  course  of  that  reputation  for  dryness 
and  tediousness  which  it  so  universally  bears.  Students 
will  cease  to  be  mere  reciters,  and  become  real  in- 
quirers. What  is  so  co-ordinated  with  the  other  de- 
partments of  a  liberal  course  of  study  will  be  continu- 
ally brought  to  the  mind,  till  it  is  fixed  never  to  be 
forgotten. 

Otis  H.  Robinson. 


There  is  no  free-trade  measure  which  will  ever  lower 
the  price  of  brains ;  there  is  no  California  of  common 
sense. 

John  Ruskin. 

A  DESIRABLE  FACULTY. 

The  faculty  of  perceiving  what  powers  are  required 
for  the  production  of  a  thing  is  the  faculty  of  perceiving 
excellence,  in  which  men,  even  of  the  most  cultivated 
taste,  must  always  be  wanting,  unless  they  have  added 
practice  to  reflection ;  because  none  can  estimate  the 
power  manifested  in  victory  unless  they  have  personally 


2o6  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

measured  the  strength  to  be  overcome.  Though  it  is 
possible  by  the  cultivation  of  sensibility  and  judgment 
to  become  capable  of  distinguishing  what  is  beautiful,  it 
is  totally  impossible  without  practice  and  knowledge  to 
distinguish  or  feel  what  is  excellent.  The  beauty  or  the 
truth  of  Titian's  flesh-tint  may  be  appreciated  by  all ; 
but  it  is  only  to  the  artist,  whose  multiplied  hours  of 
toil  have  not  reached  the  slightest  resemblance  of  one 
of  its  tones,  that  its  excellence  is  manifest. 

John  Ruskin. 


He  among  us  who  best  knows  how  to  bear  the  good 
and  evil  fortunes  of  this  life  is,  in  my  opinion,  the  best 
educated  ;  whence  it  follows  that  true  education  consists 
less  in  precept  than  in  practice. 


J.  J.  Rousseau. 


A  GREAT  NEED. 


Of  nothing  am  I  more  thoroughly  convinced  than  that 
the  most  radical  defect  to-day  in  our  American  colleges 
is  a  want  of  due  attention  to  rhetorical  studies,  under- 
standing by  these  studies  not  only  practice  in  the  arts 
of  composition  and  of  speech,  the  patient  acquisition  of 
power  to  think  justly,  and  to  express  one's  thoughts 
accurately,  but  also  the  acquisition  of  that  literary  taste, 
that  knowledge  of  English  literature,  and  that  apprecia- 
tion of  its  riches,  without  which  facility  and  skill  in  the 
use  of  our  tongue  are  never  attainable.  The  number  of 
men  annually  graduating  from  our  colleges  with  very 
creditable  attainments  as  to  both  extent  and  accuracy 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


207 


of  knowledge,  but  showing  a  lamentable  incapacity  for 
systematic  thinking  and  for  clear,  forcible,  and  correct, 
not  to  say  elegant,  expression  of  their  thoughts,  is  one 
of  the  standing  reproaches  to  our  American  education. 
The  only  remedy  appears  to  be  in  a  more  thorough  and 
continuous  training  in  those  studies  which  are  known  as 
.rhetorical,  and  which  consist  in  an  incessant  critical  study 
and  practice  of  the  English  tongue.  Years  and  years  of 
closest  study  are  given  to  other  tongues,  both  ancient 
and  modern,  tongues  which  only  a  fraction  of  educated 
men  are  expected  to  use  in  after  life,  while  only  inci- 
dental and  comparatively  superficial  attention  is  given 
to  that  mother  tongue  which  all  are  compelled  to  use 
in  speech  or  in  writing  every  day  of  their  lives,  and  on 
a  skilled  use  of  which,  with  many,  depend,  to  no  small 
degree,  their  success  or  failure  in  life.  And  in  saying 
this,  it  is  not  forgotten  that  for  the  enlargement  of  one's 
knowledge  of  English  words,  and  for  the  cultivation  of 
that  nice  discrimination  between  synonymes  which  only 
the  most  careful  study  of  language  can  impart,  —  a  dis- 
crimination which  shows  itself  as  one  of  the  striking 
characteristics  of  the  classics  of  every  people,  —  nothing 
has  yet  been  discovered,  or  is  ever  likely  to  be  discov- 
ered, that  can  take  the  place  of  the  critical  study  of  the 
classical  literatures  of  the  Greeks  and  Romans.  But 
the  fact  cannot  be  disguised  that  many  an  excellent 
Latin  and  Greek  scholar  writes  wretched  English,  while 
admirable  English  is  written  by  many  who  know  neither 
Latin  nor  Greek.  What  our  colleges  most  need  is  not 
neglect  of  the  classics  of  the  ancients,  but  more  atten- 
tion to  the  classics  of  our  own  tongue ;  an  attention  that 
shall  consist  not  merely  in  a  study  of  its  best  authors. 


2o8  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

but  of  that  unremitted  and  critical  practice,  without 
which,  in  literature  as  in  everything  else,  no  high  de- 
gree of  excellence  is  ever  attained. 

EzEKiEL  G.  Robinson. 


THE  ART   OF  READING. 

The  very  first  thing  to  be  remembered  by  him  who 
would  study  the  art  of  reading  is  that  nothing  can  take 
the  place  of  personal  enthusiasm  and  personal  work. 
However  wise  may  be  the  friendly  adviser,  and  however 
full  and  perfect  the  chosen  handbook  of  reading,  neither 
can  do  more  than  to  stimulate  and  suggest ;  nothing  can 
take  the  place  of  a  direct  familiarity  with  books  them- 
selves. To  know  one  good  book  well  is  better  than  to 
know  something  about  a  hundred  good  books  at  second 
hand.  The  taste  for  reading  and  the  habit  of  reading 
must  always  be  developed  from  within  ;  they  can  never 
be  given  from  without. 

All  plans  and  systems  of  reading,  therefore,  should  be 
taken  as  far  as  possible  into  one's  heart  of  hearts,  and 
be  made  a  part  of  his  own  mind  and  thought.  Unless 
this  can  be  done,  they  are  worse  than  useless.  Dr. 
McCosh  says :  "The  book  to  read  is  not  the  one  that 
thinks  for  you,  but  the  one  which  makes  you  think." 
It  is  plain,  then,  that  a  "course  of  reading"  may  be  a 
great  good  or  a  great  evil,  according  to  its  use.  The 
late  Bishop  Alonzo  Potter,  one  of  the  most  judicious  of 
literary  helpers,  offered  to  readers  this  sound  piece  of 
advice :  "  Do  not  be  so  enslaved  by  any  system  or 
course  of  study,  as  to  think  it  may  not  be  altered." 
However  conscious  one  may  be  of  his  own  deficiencies. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


209 


and  however  he  may  feel  the  needs  of  outside  aid,  he 
should  never  permit  his  own  independence  and  self- 
respect  to  be  obliterated.  "He  who  reads  incessantly," 
says  Milton, 

•*  And  to  his  reading  brings  not 
A  spirit  and  judgment  equal  or  superior, 
Uncertain  and  unsettled  still  remains, 
Deep  versed  in  books,  but  shallow  in  himself." 

The  general  agreement  of  intelligent  people  as  to  the 
merit  of  an  author  or  the  worth  of  a  book,  is,  of  course, 
to  be  accepted  until  one  finds  some  valid  reason  for 
reversing  it.  But  nothing  is  to  be  gained  by  pretending 
to  like  what  one  really  dislikes,  or  to  enjoy  what  one 
does  not  find  profitable  or  even  intelligible.  If  a  reader 
is  not  honest  and  sincere  in  this  matter,  there  is  small 
hope  for  him.  The  lowest  taste  may  be  cultivated  and 
improved,  and  radically  changed ;  but  pretence  and 
artificiality  can  never  grow  into  anything  better.  They 
must  be  wholly  rooted  out  at  the  start.  If  you  dislike 
Shakespeare's  *' Hamlet,"  and  greatly  enjoy  a  trashy 
story,  say  so  with  sincerity  and  sorrow,  if  occasion 
requires,  and  hope  and  work  for  a  reversal  of  your 
taste. 

It  should  always  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  busiest 
reader  must  leave  unread  all  but  a  mere  fraction  of  the 
good  books  in  the  world.  .  .  .  Since  this  is  so,  he  must 
be  very  thoughtless  and  very  timid  who  feels  any  shame 
in  confessing  that  he  is  wholly  ignorant  of  a  great  many 
books ;  and  on  the  other  hand,  none  but  a  very  super- 
ficial and  conceited  reader  will  venture  to  express  sur- 
prise at  the  deficiencies  of  others,  when  a  little  thought 


2IO  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

would  make  his  own  so  clearly  manifest.     In  Cowper's 
words : 

"  Knowledge  is  proud  that  he  has  learned  so  much ; 
Wisdom  is  humble  that  he  knows  no  more." 

Charles  F.  Richardson. 


HEART  EDUCATION. 

Crime,  small  and  great,  can  only  be  truly  stayed  by 
education,  — not  the  education  of  the  intellect  only,  which 
is  on  some  men  wasted,  and  for  others  mischievous,  but 
education  for  the  heart,  which  is  alike  good  and  neces- 
sary for  all. 

John  Ruskin. 


NOT  A   SLAVE  TO  MAXIMS. 

Cultivate  universality  of  taste.  There  is  no  surer 
mark  of  a  half-educated  mind  than  the  incapacity  of 
admiring  various  forms  of  excellence.  Men  who  can- 
not praise  Dryden  without  dispraising  Coleridge ;  nor 
feel  the  stern,  earthly  truthfulness  of  Crabbe  without 
disparaging  the  wild,  ethereal,  impalpable  music  of 
Shelley ;  nor  exalt  Spenser  except  by  sneering  at 
Tennyson,  are  precisely  the  persons  to  whom  it 
should  in  consistency  seem  strange  that  in  God's 
world  there  is  a  place  for  the  eagle  and  the  wren,  a 
separate  grace  to  the  swan  and  the  humming-bird,  their 
own  fragrance  to  the  cedar  and  the  violet.  Enlarge 
your  tastes  that  you  may  enlarge  your  hearts  as  well  as 
your  pleasures ;  feel  all  that  is  beautiful,  love  all  that 
is  good.  The  first  maxim  in  religion  and  in  art  is: 
Sever  yourself  from  all  sectarianism  ;  pledge  yourself 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS,  211 

to  no  school ;  cut  your  life  adrift  from  all  party ;  be  a 
slave  to  no  maxims ;  stand  forth  unfettered  and  free, 
servant  only  to  the  truth.  And  if  you  say,  "  But  this 
will  force  each  of  us  to  stand  alone,"  I  reply:  "Yes, 
grandly  alone !  untrammelled  by  the  prejudices  of  any, 
and  free  to  admire  the  beauty  and  love  the  goodness 
of  them  all." 

Frederick  W.  Robertson. 


A  WARNING. 


Education  may  be,  instead  of  a  great  blessing,  a 
great  curse.  We  are  training  boys  and  girls  too  rapidly. 
We  have  a  thousand  candidates  for  one  place.  The 
nine  hundred  and  ninety-nine  live,  then,  by  their  wits, 
and  the  wits  are  turned  to  fraud  and  sensationalism. 
This  is  not  an  argument  against  education,  but  a  warn- 
ing.    "Make  it  healthy  and  safe." 

Lord  Shaftesbury. 


AN   UNSOLVED  PROBLEM. 

• 

The  teacher  of  an  evening  school  has  no  easy  task. 
He  has  widely  various  minds  to  deal  with.  Grouping 
the  pupils  by  similarities  of  conditions  and  needs  goes 
but  little  way  to  help  him.  To  succeed  in  teaching 
such  a  heterogeneous  company,  he  needs  more  than 
ordinary  skill,  versatility,  and  good  sense.  The  mere 
routine  that  day-school  teachers  sometimes  fall  into 
utterly  breaks  down  here.  And  yet  the  appointing 
powers  too  often  act  as  if  inferior  qualifications  were 
good  enough  for  teachers  of  evening  schools.  Teach- 
ers who   have  failed   in  the  day  schools  or  who  are 


212  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

thought  to  be  unfit  for  appointment  there,  are  allowed 
to  try  their  hand  at  the  no  less  delicate  task  of  teaching 
evening-school  pupils.  A  good  deal  of  the  work  in 
evening  schools  is  done  by  those  who  are  not  and  do 
not  intend  to  become  teachers  by  profession.  Their 
chief  interest  lies  in  some  other  profession  ;  and  they 
resort  to  teaching  for  the  time  being  as  a  means  of 
partial  support.  They  may  or  may  not  be  good  teach- 
ers. If  they  are,  well  and  good ;  if  they  are  not,  it  is 
bad  for  the  school,  however  convenient  the  stipends 
may  be  for  themselves.  How  to  provide  the  evening- 
school  service  with  a  sufficient  body  of  professionally 
trained  teachers, — able  persons  who  have  adopted 
teaching  as  a  life-work,  —  is  yet  one  of  the  unsolved 
problems. 

E.  P.  Seaver. 


THE  TEACHER  OF  THE  FUTURE. 

Now,  looking  forward  fifty  years,  instead  of  back- 
ward, and  judging  from  the  present  tendencies,  what 
can  we  affirm  that  the  teacher  of  the  future  is  to  be, 
what  his  qualifications,  and  what  his  professional  career  ? 
It  will  be  safe  to  say  that  he  must  possess  some  natural 
aptitude  for  the  office :  a  bright  intellect  and  warm 
heart ;  a  knowledge  of  things  beyond  what  is  required 
to  be  taught ;  a  professional  training  or  its  equivalent ; 
a  winning  presence  in  person  and  manners ;  in  short, 
a  model  character  intellectually,  morally,  and  socially. 
Such  will  be  the  requisites  for  an  appointment. 

To  retain  his  place  he  must  never  cease  to  be  a  pro- 
gressive man.  His  professional  education  must  never 
be  suffered  to  come  to  an  end.     He  must  read  the  great 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  213 

thoughts  of  great  writers  on  the  nature  of  the  mind 
to  be  educated,  on  social  organization,  on  the  demands 
of  an  advancing  age ;  must  in  some  measure  keep  up 
with  the  world  in  popular  science  and  literature ;  he 
must  enrich  his  mind  by  studying  the  lives  and  suc- 
cess of  great  educators  of  the  past,  and  know  something 
of  the  results  of  the  experiments  of  successful,  living 
teachers. 

Above  all,  he  must  in  his  daily  work  observe  and 
experiment  for  himself,  just  as  if  he  were  a  self-made 
teacher,  remembering  the  words  of  Richter,  "  All  is  but 
lip-wisdom  that  wants  experience."  His  inquisitive  eye 
must  watch  and  note  all  that  passes  before  his  eye  in 
the  little  world  under  his  care.  That  is  his  laboratory 
for  analyzing  human  character,  his  practical  school  of 
philosophy.  He  will  daily  test  and  revise  his  own 
work,  and  feel  his  way  along  like  the  careful  investi- 
gating philosopher,  generalizing  the  results  of  his  own 
observation  and  experiments,  and  then  verifying  his 
generalizations  by  new  tests.  Something  of  this  kind 
is  within  the  reach  of  every  one  who  is  born  and  edu- 
cated to  be  a  teacher. 

Barnas  Sears. 


EDUCATIONAL  SYSTEMS  A  GROWTH. 

No  one  particular  age  can  prescribe  the  methods  for 
succeeding  ages ;  no  one  nation  for  all  succeeding  na- 
tions ;  no  one  race  for  all  other  races.  Schools  are  an 
organic  growth  of  society.  They  represent  more  or 
less  perfectly  the  wants  and  spirit  of  a  nation.  Modern 
methods   of   teaching   should   therefore   represent   the 


214 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


existing  state  of  knowledge  and  civilization,  not  the 
obsolete  learning  or  methods  of  past  ages ;  but  tradi- 
tional culture,  like  customs,  manners,  habits,  and  laws, 
too  often  holds  sway  long  after  the  causes  that  organ- 
ized it  have  ceased  to  act.  "  Like  political  constitu- 
tions," says  Herbert  Spencer,  "  educational  systems  are 
not  made,  but  grow ;  and  within  brief  periods  growth 
is  insensible." 

While  it  cannot  be  claimed  as  yet  that  teaching  is  a 
fully  developed  science,  great  progress  has  been  made 
in  formulating  the  principles  that  underlie  the  best  of 
our  present  methods  of  instruction.  Educational  his- 
tory is  full  of  errors,  most  of  which  were  the  result  of 
empirical  methods.  Experience  in  this  field,  as  in 
every  other,  in  order  to  be  of  any  value,  must  be  the 
result  of  experiments  directed  by  the  light  of  science, 
and  must  have  for  its  objective  point  the  welfare  of 
every  child  in  the  nation. 

John  Swett. 


LIFE-EDUCATION. 


Daily  experience  shows  that  it  is  energetic  individu- 
alism which  produces  the  most  powerful  effects  upon  the 
life  and  action  of  others,  and  really  constitutes  the  best 
practical  education.  Schools,  academies,  colleges,  give 
but  the  rnerest  beginnings  of  culture  in  comparison  with 
it.  Far  more  influential  is  the  life-education  daily  given 
in  our  homes,  in  the  streets,  behind  counters,  in  work- 
shops, at  the  loom  and  the  plough,  in  counting-houses 
and  manufactories,  and  in  the  busy  haunts  of  men. 
This  is  that  finishing  instruction  as  members  of  society, 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  215 

which  Schiller  designated  "  the  education  of  the  human 
race,"  consisting  in  action,  conduct,  self-culture,  self- 
control,  —  all  that  tends  to  discipline  a  man  truly,  and 
fit  him  for  the  proper  performance  of  the  duties  and 
business  of  life, — a  kind  of  education  not  to  be  learned 
from  books  or  acquired  by  any  amount  of  mere  literary 
training.  With  his  usual  weight  of  words,  Bacon  ob- 
serves that  '*  studies  teach  not  their  own  use ;  but  that 
is  a  wisdom  without  them,  and  above  them,  won  by 
observation  "  ;  a  remark  that  holds  true  of  actual  life, 
as  well  as  of  the  cultivation  of  the  intellect  itself.  For 
all  experience  serves  to  illustrate  and  enforce  the  lesson 
that  a  man  perfects  himself  by  work  more  than  by  read- 
ing ;  that  it  is  life  rather  than  literature,  action  rather 
than  study,  and  character  rather  than  biography,  which 
tend  perpetually  to  renovate  mankind. 

Samuel  Smiles. 


THE   HOME   OR  THE  NATION. 

Every  human  being  has  duties  to  be  performed,  and 
therefore  has  need  of  cultivating  the  capacity  for  doing 
them,  whether  the  sphere  of  action  be  the  management 
of  a  household,  the  conduct  of  a  trade  or  profession,  or 
the  government  of  a  nation. 

Samuel  Smiles. 


IMPORTANT  KNOWLEDGE  AND  BELLES-LETTRES. 

However  fully  we  may  admit  that  extensive  acquain- 
tance with  modern  languages  is  a  valuable  accomplish- 
ment, which,  through  reading,  conversation,  and  travel, 
aids  in  giving  a  certain  finish,  it  by  no  means  follows 


2i6  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

that  this  result  is  rightly  purchased  at  the  cost  of  that 
vitally  important  knowledge  sacrificed  to  it.  Supposing 
it  true  that  classical  education  conduces  to  elegance  and 
correctness  of  style,  it  cannot  be  said  that  elegance 
and  correctness  of  style  are  comparable  in  importance 
to  a  familiarity  with  the  principles  that  should  guide 
the  rearing  of  children.  Grant  that  the  taste  may  be 
greatly  improved  by  reading  all  the  poetry  written  in 
extinct  languages ;  yet  it  is  not  to  be  inferred  that  such 
improvement  of  taste  is  equivalent  in  value  to  an  ac- 
quaintance with  the  laws  of  health.  Accomplishments, 
the  fine  arts,  belles-lettres^  and  all  those  things  which,  as 
we  say,  constitute  the  effloresence  of  civilization,  should 
be  wholly  subordinate  to  that  knowledge  and  discipline 
in  which  civilization  rests.  As  they  occupy  the  leisure 
part  of  lifcy  so  should  they  occupy  the  leisure  part  of  edu- 
cation. 

Herbert  Spencer. 

AN   ELEMENT  OF  POWER. 

Of  one  thing  every  teacher  may  be  certain  :  that 
scolding  and  chronic  fault-finding  will  not  win  the  hearts 
of  the  young.  Scolding  turns  a  schoolroom  into  a  pan- 
demonium, and  distils  gall  instead  of  sweetness  into 
the  work  of  the  teacher.  Every  teacher  of  young 
pupils  should  put  herself  under  bonds  to  be  good- 
natured.  We  well  know  that  the  physical  conditions 
and  material  surroundings  often  exert  a  powerful  influ- 
ence and  have  a  strong  tendency  to  disturb  the  equa- 
nimity and  exasperate  the  feelings  of  the  teacher.  All 
of  these  things  must  be  overcome,  the  nerves  must  not 
be  unstrung,  the  spirit  must  be  controlled  and  kept  in  a 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


217 


State  of  peace,  if  we  would,  as  teachers,  lift  the  burdens 
from  the  hearts  of  our  children.  Patient  persistency  in 
the  use  of  kindness  and  gentle  speech  is  an  element  of 
power  in  the  teacher.  Yes  !  young  teacher,  you  may 
be  firm,  but  you  must  be  also  very  kind,  if  you  would 
send  rays  of  sunshine  into  young  hearts  and  win  their 
lasting  affection  and  esteem.  One  has  truly  said, 
"Kind  words  are  more  than  gems  from  Golconda,  or 
pearls  from  the  sea." 

William  E.  Sheldon. 


ESTHETIC    TRAINING. 

The  cultivation  of  the  aesthetic  sentiment  may  enter 
into  almost  every  department  of  education.  On  one 
side  it  stands  in  close  connection  with  intellectual  train- 
ing. The  feeling  for  what  is  graceful  or  elegant  may 
be  developed  to  some  extent  in  connection  with  such 
seemingly  prosaic  exercises  as  learning  to  read  and  to 
write ;  and  by  this  means  a  certain  artistic  interest  may 
be  infused  into  the  occupation.  The  teaching  of  the 
use  of  the  mother  tongue  in  vocal  recitation  and  written 
composition  offers  a  wider  field  for  the  exercise  of  the 
aesthetic  sense,  in  a  growing  feeling  for  rhetorical  effect 
and  for  literary  style.  Many  branches  of  study  tend  to 
develop  the  aesthetic  feelings,  and  owe  much  of  their 
interest  to  this  circumstance.  This  is  pre-eminently 
true  of  classical  studies  and  of  literature  generally, 
which,  as  already  pointed  out,  specially  exercise  the 
imagination  on  its  aesthetic  side.  Physical  geography 
may  be  so  taught  as  to  elicit  a  feeling  for  the  pictur- 
esque and  the  sublime  in  natural  scenery,  and  history, 
so  as  to  call  forth  a  feeling  of  sympathetic  appreciation 


2i8  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

for  the  picturesque  lights  and  shadows  of  human  life 
and  experience,  and  admiration  for  what  is  great  and 
noble  in  human  conduct  and  character.  Even  the  more 
abstract  studies,  as  geometry  and  physical  science,  may 
be  made  a  means  of  evoking  and  strengthening  a  feel- 
ing for  what  is  beautiful,  not  only  in  material  objects 
{e.g.^  regularity  and  symmetry  in  geometric  figures, 
beauties  of  form  and  color  in  minerals,  plants,  and  ani- 
mals), but  in  ideas  and  their  logical  relations. 

On  another  side,  the  training  of  the  aesthetic  sense 
comes  into  contact  with  moral  training.  To  adopt  and 
practise  in  mode  of  dress,  in  speech,  and  generally  in 
manners,  what  is  agreeable  to  the  aesthetic  feelings  of 
others,  is  a  matter  of  so  much  social  importance  that  it 
is  rightly  looked  on  as  one  of  the  lesser  moral  obliga- 
tions. Hence  the  stress  laid  in  the  early  period  of 
training  on  the  cultivation  of  naturalness  and  fitness  in 
carriage,  movement,  and  speech,  on  neatness  in  dress, 
etc.,  and  on  the  graces  of  courtesy. 

It  is  to  be  observed  finally  that,  in  training  the  aes- 
thetic faculty,  a  natural  order  is  to  be  followed,  answering 
to  the  development  of  faculty.  Thus,  it  is  evident  that 
tune  singing,  or  singing  in  unison,  must  precede  part 
singing,  which  presupposes  the  development  of  a  sense 
of  musical  harmony.  Similarly,  a  certain  training  in 
the  use  of  colors  may  appropriately  precede  exercises  in 
drawing. 

James  Sully. 


SCHOOL  KNOWLEDGE  AND   DAILY  LIFE. 

No  part  of  a  child's  school  knowledge  can  be  safely 
allowed  to  remain  long  detached  from  its  daily  life.    The 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


219 


history  and  geography  of  lesson  books  must  join  on  to 
that  of  the  newspapers  ;  it  is  almost  worse  to  know  the 
name  and  date  of  a  writer  or  a  hero,  without  an  inde- 
pendent familiarity  with  the  nature  of  his  books  or 
actions,  than  to  be  frankly  ignorant  of  all  at  once ;  and 
in  every  branch  of  science  it  is  admitted  that  a  knowl- 
edge of  definitions  and  formulae  is  useless  apart  from 
experimental  acquaintance  with  the  actual  bodies  de- 
scribed. An  inaccurate  general  knowledge  that  would 
not  stand  the  test  of  examination  may,  even  in  some 
cases,  have  more  educational  value  than  a  few  correct 
and  barren  facts ;  and  our  educational  results  will  not 
be  thoroughly  satisfactory,  if  detailed  information  is 
imparted  faster  than  circumstantial  impressions  about 
its  color  and  bearing. 

Miss  Edith  Sjmcox. 


WISDOM  AND   KNOWLEDGE. 

Now  for  the  philosophy  which  relates  to  knowledge. 
Knowledge  is  a  brave  thing.  I  am  a  plain,  ignorant, 
untaught  man,  and  know  my  ignorance.  But  it  is  a 
brave  thing  when  we  look  around  us  in  this  wonderful 
world,  to  understand  something  of  what  we  see  ;  to  know 
something  of  the  earth  on  which  we  move,  the  air  which 
we  breathe,  and  the  elements  whereof  we  are  made ;  to 
comprehend  the  motions  of  the  moon  and  stars,  and 
measure  the  distances  between  them,  and  compute  times 
and  seasons ;  to  observe  the  laws  which  sustain  the 
universe  by  keeping  all  things  in  their  courses  ;  to  search 
into  the  mysteries  of  nature,  and  discover  the  hidden 
virtue  of  plants  and  stones,  and  read  the  signs  and 
tokens  which  are  shown  us,  and  make  out  the  meaning 


220  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 

of  hidden  things,  and  apply  all  this  to  the  benefit  of  our 
fellow-creatures. 

Wisdom  and  knowledge,  Daniel,  make  the  difference 
between  man  and  man,  and  that  between  man  and 
beast  is  hardly  greater. 

These  things  do  not  always  go  together.  There  may 
be  wisdom  without  knowledge,  and  there  may  be  knowl- 
edge without  wisdom.  A  man  without  knowledge,  if 
he  walk  humbly  with  his  God,  and  live  in  charity  with 
his  neighbors,  may  be  wise  unto  salvation.  A  man 
without  wisdom  may  not  find  his  knowledge  avail  him 
quite  so  well.  But  it  is  he  who  possesses  both  that  is 
the  true  philosopher.  The  more  he  knows,  the  more  he 
is  desirous  of  knowing  ;  and  yet  the  further  he  advances 
in  knowledge  the  better  he  understands  how  little  he 
can  attain,  and  the  more  deeply  he  feels  that  God  alone 
can  satisfy  the  infinite  desires  of  an  immortal  soul.  To 
understand  this  is  the  perfection  of  philosophy. 

Robert  Southey. 


THE  HEAD  AND   THE   HEART. 

It  is  not  merely  true  that  all  enlightenment  of  the  un- 
derstanding is  valuable  only  so  far  as  it  reacts  upon  the 
character.  It  also  proceeds,  to  a  certain  extent,  from 
the  character;  for  the  road  to  the  head  must  pass 
through  the  heart. 

J.  C.  F.  Schiller. 


SUBSIDIZING  ALL  SOURCES. 

The  teacher  should  always  be  a  pupil.     That  catho- 
licity of  faith  and  that  humility  which  always  mark  the 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  221 

sincere  seeker  after  truth  only  come  to  him  who  is  ever 
in  quest  of  the  truth.  The  moment  one  ceases  to  be  a 
student,  he  practically  shuts  himself  up  within  the  limits 
of  his  own  narrow  sphere,  while  the  great  universe  of 
truth  is  all  without  and  beyond  him.  One  of  the  great- 
est mistakes  that  we  have  ever  made  in  this  work  of 
education  is  in  supposing  that  the  so-called  limits  of 
the  studies  pursued  in  our  schools  fix  practically  the 
boundaries  of  the  knowledge  to  be  possessed  by  the 
teachers. 

While  it  is  too  true  that  the  mere  shell  of  instruction, 
as  laid  down  in  a  course  of  study,  may  be  given  by  one 
who  knows  but  little  more  himself,  it  is  equally  certain 
that  the  true  education,  the  real  instruction,  the  "build- 
ing up"  of  the  youthful  mind  in  symmetry  and  in 
strength,  is  too  often  a  sad  and  lamentable  failure.  In 
the  day  of  final  reckoning,  how  many  minds  shall  be 
found  to  have  been  darkened  ;  how  many  aspirations  to 
have  been  quenched  ;  how  many  careers  of  honor  and 
usefulness  to  have  been  turned  to  failure  or  even  dis- 
grace, by  the  refusal  or  inability  of  the  early  teacher  to 
respond  to  what  were  then  called  the  whims  of  childish 
fancy,  or  the  thoughtless  word }  Let  it,  then,  be  your 
worthy  ambition  to  subsidize  all  realms  of  attainable 
truth  to  your  work.  No  matter  how  humble  your 
sphere,  or  how  contracted,  you  are  dealing  with  im- 
mortal souls,  whose  possibilities  are  alone  known  to 
their  Creator.  Like  Paul  and  Apollos,  the  apostles 
and  teachers  of  olden  time,  it  is  for  you  to  plant  and 
water  and  nourish ;  but  it  is  God  that  giveth  the  in- 
crease. 

Thomas  B.  Stock  well. 


222  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

WHAT  KNOWLEDGE  IS   OF   MOST  WORTH? 

What  knowledge  is  of  most  worth  ?  The  uniform 
reply  is  —  science.  This  is  the  verdict  on  all  the 
counts.  For  direct  self-preservation,  or  the  maintenance 
of  life  and  health,  the  all-important  knowledge  is  — 
science.  For  that  indirect  self-preservation  which  we 
call  gaining  a  livelihood,  the  knowledge  of  greatest  value 
is  —  science.  For  the  due  discharge  of  parental  func- 
tions, the  proper  guidance  is  to  be  found  only  in  — 
science.  For  that  interpretation  of  national  life,  past 
and  present,  without  which  the  citizen  cannot  rightly 
regulate  his  conduct,  the  indispensable  key  is  —  science. 
Alike  for  the  most  perfect  production  and  highest  en- 
joyment of  art  in  all  its  forms,  the  needful  preparation 
is  still  —  science.  And  for  purposes  of  discipline  — 
intellectual,  moral,  religious  —  the  most  efficient  study 
is,  once  more  —  science.  The  question  which  at  first 
seemed  so  perplexed,  has  become,  in  the  course  of  our 
inquiry,  comparatively  simple.  We  have  not  to  estimate 
the  degrees  of  importance  of  different  orders  of  human 
activity,  and  different  studies  as  severally  fitting  us  for 
them,  since  we  find  that  the  study  of  science,  in  its 
most  comprehensive  meaning,  is  the  best  preparation 
for  all  these  orders  of  activity.  We  have  not  to  decide 
between  the  claims  of  knowledge  of  great  though  con- 
ventional value,  and  knowledge  of  less  though  intrinsic 
value ;  seeing  that  the  knowledge  which  we  find  to  be 
of  most  value  in  all  other  respects  is  intrinsically  most 
valuable ;  its  worth  is  not  dependent  upon  opinion,  but 
is  as  fixed  as  is  the  relation  of  man  to  the  surrounding 
world.     Necessary   and   eternal   as   are   its   truths,   all 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


223 


science  concerns  all  mankind  for  all  time.  Equally  at 
present,  and  in  the  remotest  future,  must  it  be  of  in- 
calculable importance  for  the  regulation  of  their  conduct, 
that  men  should  understand  the  science  of  life,  physical, 
mental,  and  social ;  and  that  they  should  understand  all 
other  science  as  a  key  to  the  science  of  Hfe. 

Herbert  Spencer. 


THE  GIFTS   OF   A   LIBERAL  EDUCATION. 

Mr.  Spencer  seems  to  ignore  the  fact  that  the  thing, 
after  all,  that  is  of  most  service  to  a  man  in  making  his 
way  in  the  world  is  to  be,  first  of  all,  an  intelligent  man ; 
and  this  intelligence  it  is  precisely  the  purpose  of  edu- 
cation to  give  him.  He  will  be  able  to  get  his  handy 
information  for  himself  afterward,  in  one  direction  or 
another,  as  happens  to  be  most  useful  to  him.  The 
ability  to  read,  in  the  largest  and  highest  sense,  that  is 
to  say,  the  ability  to  get  the  full  benefit  of  other  men's 
minds  and  experience  from  their  written  words,  and  the 
ability  to  think,  — these  are  gifts  bestowed  by  a  liberal 
education,  that  are  worth  any  amount  of  a  particular  set 
of  facts.  If  Aristotle  and  Bacon  were  to  enter  the  com- 
pany, we  should  hardly  fail  to  recognize  them  as  rather 
well-educated  men,  although  their  minds  would  be  empty 
of  all  these  facts  of  modern  science  that  are  asserted  by 
Mr.  Spencer  to  be  the  essential  conditions  of  any  sound 
education. 

E.  R.  Sill. 


We  ought  to  be  able  to  say  as  Richter  did :  "  I  have 
made  as  much  of  myself  as  could  be  made  of  the  stuff, 
and  no  man  should  require  more." 


Samuel  Smiles. 


224 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 


INTELLECTUAL  AND   MORAL  CULTURE. 

The  problem  of  determining  the  exact  relation  of 
intellectual  culture  to  moral  culture  is  one  which  has 
perplexed  men's  minds  from  the  days  of  Socrates.  On 
the  one  hand,  as  has  been  remarked,  the  enlightenment 
of  the  intelligence  is  essential  to  the  growth  of  a  clear 
and  finely  discriminative  moral  sense.  On  the  other 
hand,  it  is  possible  to  exercise  the  intellect  in  dealing 
with  the  formal  distinctions  of  jnorality  without  calling 
the  moral  faculty  into  full  vital  activity. 

This  practical  difficulty  presses  with  peculiar  force 
when  we  come  on  to  the  later  exercises  of  moral  in- 
struction. The  full  carrying-out  of  the  process  of  in- 
forming the  moral  intelligence  naturally  conducts  to 
the  more  or  less  systematic  exposition  of  the  ideas  and 
truths  of  ethics.  An  enlightened  conscience  is  one  to 
which  the  deepest  grounds  of  duty  have  begun  to  dis- 
close themselves,  and  which  has  approximated  to  a 
complete  and  harmonious  ideal  of  goodness  by  a  sys- 
tematic survey  and  co-ordination  of  the  several  divisions 
of  human  duty  and  the  corresponding  directions  of 
moral  virtue  and  excellence.  Something  in  the  shape 
of  ethical  exposition  is  thus  called  for,  when  the  child 
reaches  a  certain  point  in  moral  progress.  But  the 
educator  must  be  careful  to  make  this  dogmatic  instruc- 
tion supplementary  to,  and  not  a  substitute  for,  the 
drawing  forth  of  the  whole  moral  faculty  on  its  sensi- 
tive and  on  its  reflective  side  alike,  by  the  presentation 
of  living  concrete  illustrations  of  moral  truth.  Divorced 
from  this,  it  can  only  degenerate  into  a  dead  formal 
exercise  of  the  logical  faculty  and  the  memory. 

Jame";  Sui.ly. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


225 


When  facts  are  not  organized  into  faculty,  the  greater 
the  mass  of  them  the  more  will  the  mind  stagger  along 
under  its  burden,  hampered,  instead  of  helped,  by  its 

acquisitions.  Herbert  Spence.i. 

NATURAL  ORDER  OF  DEVELOPMENT. 
The  first  essential  in  education  is  that  the  knowledge 
of  the  zvorld,  the  attainment  of  which  is  the  aim  of  true 
education,  should  begin  at  the  right  end.  And  how 
this  is  to  be  realized  is  also  obvious ;  in  every  subject 
intuitions  should pi'ecede  general  ideas,  and  the  narrower 
idea  the  wider  one,  arid  thus  the  whole  structure  of 
knowledge  be  built  up  in  the  exact  order  in  which  one 
thought  suggests  another.  The  instant  a  link  in  the 
chain  of  thought  is  omitted,  there  arise  imperfect  ideas, 
and  from  imperfect  ideas  false  ideas,  and  finally  dis- 
torted views  of  the  world,  of  a  kind  more  or  less  pe- 
culiar to  the  individual,  and  such  as  we  see  most  people 
carrying  in  their  heads  for  a  long  time,  in  a  majority  of 
cases  through  life.  He  who  examines  himself  will  dis- 
cover that  the  correct  or  the  clear  comprehension  of 
many  simple  matters  and  relations  first  dawned  upon 
him  at  a  late  period  in  life,  and  sometimes  very  sud- 
denly. Now  these  were  dark  spots  in  his  knowledge  of 
the  world,  owing  their  origin  to  omitted  links  in  the 
chain  of  thought  in  early  education,  whether  natural  or 
artificial.  We  ought,  therefore,  to  try  to  discover  the 
natural  order  in  the  development  of  ideas  in  the  differ- 
ent branches  of  knowledge,  and  then  we  ought  to 
impart  to  children  knowledge  about  things  and  the 
relations  of  things  methodically  and  in  harmony  with 

this   order.  Arthur  Schopenhauer. 


226  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

A  STRONG  HEAD   AND  A  SOUND   HEART. 

History  teaches  one  plain  and  mournful  lesson : 
that  man  cannot  safely  be  left  to  his  luxurious  tenden- 
cies, be  they  of  the  sense  or  of  the  soul.  There  must 
be  austerity  somewhere.  There  must  be  a  strong  head 
and  a  sound  heart  somewhere.  And  where  ought  we 
to  look  for  these  but  in  the  educated  classes  t  In 
whom,  if  not  in  these,  ought  we  to  find  that  theory  of 
education,  that  style  of  culture,  and  that  tone  of  intel- 
lect which  will  right  up  society  when  it  is  sinking  down 
into  luxury,  or  hold  it  up  where  it  is,  if  it  is  already 
upright  and  austere  t  Educated  men,  amid  the  currents 
and  in  the  general  drift  of  society,  ought  to  discharge 
the  function  of  a  warp  and  anchor.'  They,  of  all  men, 
ought  to  be  characterized  by  strength.  And  especially 
do  our  own  age  and  country  need  this  style  of  culture. 
Exposed  as  the  national  mind  is  to  a  luxurious  civiliza- 
tion, as  imminently  exposed  as  Nineveh  or  Rome  ever 
were,  the  Beautiful  is  by  no  means  the  main  idea  by 
which  it  should  be  educated  and  moulded.  As  in  the 
Prometheus,  none  but  the  demi-gods  Strength  and 
Force  can  chain  the  Titan.  Our  task,  as  men  of  cul- 
ture and  as  men  who  are  to  determine  the  prevailing 
type  of  culture,  is  both  in  theory  and  practice  to  subject 
the  Form  to  the  Substance ;  to  bring  the  Beautiful 
under  the  problem  of  the  True  and  the  Good.  Our 
task,  as  descendants  of  an  austere  ancestry,  as  partakers 
in  a  severe  nationality,  is  to  retain  the  strict,  heroic, 
intellectual,  and  religious  spirit  of  the  Puritan  and  the 
Pilgrim  in  these  forms  of  an  advancing  civilization. 
In  order  to  this,  in  order  that  the  sensuously  and  luxu- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


227 


riously  Beautiful  may  not  be  too  much  for  us,  strength 
and  reserve  are  needed  in  the  cultivated  classes.  They 
must  be  reticent,  and,  like  the  sculptor,  chisel  and  re- 
chisel,  until  they  cut  off  and  cut  down  to  a  simple  and 
severe  beauty  in  Art  and  in  Literature,  in  Religion  and 
in  Life. 

WiLUAM  G.  T.  Shedd. 

MANY   IN  ONE. 

Learning  is  a  world,  not  a  chaos.  The  various  accu- 
mulations of  human  knowledge  are  not  so  many  de- 
tached masses.  They  are  all  connected  parts  of  one 
great  system  of  truth ;  and  though  that  system  be 
infinitely  too  comprehensive  for  any  one  of  us  to  com- 
pass, yet  each  component  member  of  it  bears  to  every 
other  component  member  relations  which  each  of  us 
may,  in  his  own  department  of  study,  search  out  and 
discover  for  himself.  A  man  is  really  and  soundly 
learned  in  exact  proportion  to  the  number  and  to  the 
importance  of  those  relations  which  he  has  thus  care- 
fully examined  and  accurately  understood. 

Sir  James  Stephen. 


ACCURACY. 


For  every  purpose,  whether  for  action  or  speculation, 
I  hold  that  quality  to  be  most  valuable  which  it  is  quite 
within  our  own  power  to  acquire,  and  which  Nature, 
unassisted,  never  yet  gave  to  any  man,  —  I  mean  a 
perfectly  accurate  habit  of  thought  and  expression. 
Such  is,  as  far  as  I  can  see,  one  of  the  very  rarest 
acquirements. 

Lord  Stanley. 


228  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

IN   EXILE. 

There  is  no  land  where  man  cannot  dwell,  no  land 
where  he  cannot  uplift  his  eyes  to  heaven ;  wherever  we 
are,  the  distance  of  the  divine  from  the  human  remains 
the  same.  So  then,  as  long  as  my  eyes  are  not  robbed 
of  that  spectacle  with  which  they  cannot  be  satiated,  so 
long  as  I  may  look  upon  the  sun  and  moon,  and  fix  my 
lingering  gaze  on  the  other  constellations,  and  consider 
their  rising  and  setting  and  the  spaces  between  them 
and  the  causes  of  their  less  and  greater  speed, — while 
I  may  contemplate  the  multitude  of  stars  glittering 
throughout  the  heaven,  some  stationary,  some  revolving, 
some  suddenly  blazing  forth,  others  dazzling  the  gaze 
with  a  flood  of  fire  as  though  they  fell,  and  others  leav- 
ing over  a  long  space  their  trails  of  light ;  while  I  am  in 
the  midst  of  such  phenomena,  and  mingle  myself,  as  far 
as  a  man  may,  with  things  celestial,  — while  my  soul  is 
ever  occupied  in  contemplations  so  sublime  as  these, 
what  matters  it  what  ground  I  tread  ? 

Seneca. 


IN  A  FOG. 

A  MAN  who  does  not  understand  Latin  is  like  one  who 
walks  through  a  beautiful  region  in  a  fog ;  his  horizon 
is  very  close  to  him.  He  sees  only  the  nearest  things 
clearly,  and  a  few  steps  away  from  him  the  outlines  of 
everything  become  indistinct  or  wholly  lost.  But  the 
horizon  of  the  Latin  scholar  extends  far  and  wide 
through  the  centuries  of  modern  history,  the  Middle 
Ages,  and  antiquity. 

Arthur  Schopenhauer. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  229 

YOUTHFUL  DISCOVERERS. 

In  education  the  process  of  self-development  should 
be  encouraged  to  the  fullest  extent.  Children  should  be 
led  to  make  their  own  investigations,  and  to  draw  their 
own  inferences.  They  should  be  told  as  little  as  possi- 
ble, and  induced  to  discover  as  much  as  possible.  Hu- 
manity has  progressed  solely  by  self-instruction ;  and 
that  to  achieve  the  best  results,  each  mind  must  progress 
somewhat  after  the  same  fashion,  is  continually  proved 
by  the  marked  success  of  self-made  men.  Those  who 
have  been  brought  up  under  the  ordinary  school  drill, 
and  have  carried  away  with  them  the  idea  that  education 
is  practicable  only  in  that  style,  will  think  it  hopeless 
to  make  children  their  own  teachers.  If,  however,  they 
call  to  mind  that  the  all-important  knowledge  of  sur- 
rounding objects  which  a  child  gets  in  its  early  years  is 
not  without  help,  —  if  they  will  remember  that  the  child 
is  self-taught  in  the  use  of  its  mother  tongue,  —  if  they 
will  estimate  the  amount  of  that  experience  of  life,  that 
out-of-school  wisdom  which  every  .boy  gathers  for  him- 
self, —  if  they  will  mark  the  unusual  intelligence  of  the 
uncared-for  London  gamin,  as  shown  in  all  the  directions 
in  which  his  faculties  have  been  tasked,  —  if  further, 
they  will  think  how  many  minds  have  struggled  up 
unaided,  not  only  through  the  mysteries  of  our  irration- 
ally planned  curriculum,  but  through  hosts  of  other  obsta- 
cles besides,  they  will  find  it  a  not  unreasonable  con- 
clusion, that  if  the  subjects  be  put  before  him  in  right 
order  and  right  form,  any  pupil  of  ordinary  capacity  will 
surmount  his  successive  difficulties  with  but  little  assist- 
ance. 

jRBERT  Spencer. 

^'^  OF  THK^^^ 


230  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

As  this  life  is  a  preparation  for  eternity,  so  is  educa- 
tion a  preparation  for  this  life  ;  and  that  education  alone 
is  valuable  which  answers  these  great  primary  objects. 

Bishop  Short. 


EDUCATION  FOR  CITIZENSHIP. 

What  kind  of  education  should  every  voter  have? 
First,  last,  and  always,  political  education,  built  upon 
the  foundation  of  sound  common  sense  and  enlightened 
conscience.  He  must  know  his  rights ;  he  must  feel 
and  perform  his  duties ;  he  must  love  his  country. 

Conceive  of  a  perfect  governor.  He  knows  human 
nature  thoroughly.  He  is  deeply  versed  in  the  philos- 
ophy of  history.  In  his  memory  lie,  like  paths  of  light, 
the  careers  of  the  great  governments  in  past  centuries. 
He  knows  the  history  of  liberty,  each  pillar  and  arch 
and  buttress  of  the  great  temple  of  freedom,  and  how 
they  have  been  cemented  with  the  best  blood  of  the 
race.  Especially  is  he  familiar  with  every  phase  of  the 
past  and  present  life  of  his  own  country,  its  prominent 
men,  its  principles,  and  its  parties.  Nothing  that  bears 
upon  the  political  or  social  science  escapes  his  appre- 
hension, or  misleads  his  judgment,  or  baffles  his  action. 
His  arm  is  as  strong,  his  heart  as  warm,  his  conscience 
as  keen,  as  his  intellect  is  piercing  and  comprehensive. 
Add  to  this  a  familiar  acquaintance  with  common  busi- 
ness ;  the  ability  of  prompt  action  ;  the  faculty  of  ready, 
clear,  concise  speech ;  skill  in  parliamentary  affairs ;  tact 
in  the  management  of  men ;  knowledge  of  all  those 
branches  of  learning  and  applied  science  that  are  called 
into  play  in  the  transaction  of  public  business.     Crown 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  23 1 

him  as  a  loyal  son  of  the  great  King !  This  is  our  ideal 
governor ;  this  is  our  ideal  voter.  To  the  measure  of 
the  stature  of  this  perfect  citizenship  every  man  ought 
to  come.  The  essential  nature  of  our  government 
requires  nothing  less.  Unless  a  clear  majority  of  voters 
are  brought  somewhere  near  the  attainment  of  this  goal, 
our  liberties  are  not  safe. 

How  shall   this    ideal  be   measurably  attained .?  .  .  . 

There  is  one  instrumentality  through  which  the  de- 
sired results  may  be  attained.  It  is  an  American  in- 
vention, the  capacity  of  which  has  been  but  partially 
shown,  but  which  possesses  immeasurably  more  power 
than  we  have  been  accustomed  to  think.  It  can  reach 
nearly  every  child  and  every  youth,  three  to  six  hours 
a  day,  five  or  six  days  a  week,  and  keep  its  hold  upon 
him  from  the  age  of  four  or  five  to  sixteen  or  eighteen. 
Never  was  machinery  more  happily  devised  to  accom- 
plish any  result  than  the  public  school  system  of  New 
England  to  produce  enlightened  and  conscientious  voters. 
With  a  few  adjustments  easily  made,  a  definite  purpose 
persistently  pursued,  and  a  period  of  instruction  reason- 
ably prolonged,  the  great  majority  of  young  Americans 
can  be  made  wise  and  good  citizens. 

And  this  is,  or  ought  to  be,  the  great  object  aimed 
at  in  the  public  schools.  It  is  demonstrable  that  the 
founders  of  New  England  established  its  school  system 
for  this  very  end  ;  not  to  enable  men  to  earn  a  liveli- 
hood, but  to  qualify  them  for  citizenship ;  not  to  help 
them  to  make  money,  or  shine  in  professions,  or  to 
become  skilled  mechanics,  prudent  farmers,  bold  sailors, 
shrewd  lawyers,  accurate  accountants,  but  to  be  capable 
and  virtuous  members  of  the  body  politic,  to  manage 


232 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


wisely  public  affairs ;  in  the  language  of  Milton,  **  to 
perform  justly,  skilfully,  and  magnanimously  all  the 
offices,  public  and  private,  of  peace  and  war."  I  repeat, 
the  great  need  of  this  country,  and  the  fundamental 
idea  of  the  public  school  system  are  identical;  viz., 
political  education,  the  training  up  of  the  masses  in 
youth  to  be  intelligent,  honest,  and  patriotic  partici- 
pators in  public  business.  This  harvest  fully  assured, 
the  more  superadded  conveniences  and  accomplishments 
the  better ;  failing  all  this,  all  else  is  chaff. 

Homer  B.  Sprague. 


THE   SCIENCE  OF   GOVERNMENT. 

It  is  true  that  a  thorough  mastery  of  the  science  of 
government  in  all  its  various  operations  requires  a  whole 
life  of  laborious  diligence.  But  it  is  equally  true  that 
many  of  its  general  principles  admit  of  a  simple  enun- 
ciation, and  may  be  brought  within  the  comprehension 
of  the  most  common  minds.  In  this  respect  it  does  not 
materially  differ  from  any  of  the  abstract  physical  sci- 
ences. Few  of  the  latter  are  in  their  full  extent  within 
the  reach  of  any  but  the  highest  class  of  minds ;  but 
many  of  the  elements  are  nevertheless  within  the  scope 
of  common  education,  and  are  attainable  by  ordinary 
diligence.  It  is  not  necessary  that  every  citizen  should 
be  a  profound  statesman.  But  it  may  nevertheless  be 
of  vast  consequence  that  he  should  be  an  enlightened 
as  well  as  an  honest  voter,  and  a  disciplined  thinker,  if 
not  an  eloquent  speaker.  He  may  learn  enough  to 
guard  himself  against  the  insidious  wiles  of  the  dema- 
gogue, and  the  artful  appeals  of  the  courtier,  and  the 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  233 

visionary  speculations  of  the  enthusiast,  although  he 
may  not  be  able  to  solve  many  of  the  transcendental 
problems  in  political  philosophy. 

Joseph  Story. 


A  CONVERSATION  CLASS. 

Why  do  we  cram  ologies,  osophies,  and  onomies  into 
a  young  girl's  overtaxed  brain,  and  then  complacently 
send  her  out  into  the  critical,  censorious  world  with  a 
limited  vocabulary,  little  knowledge  of  the  subtle  mean- 
ing, the  ins  and  outs,  the  lights  and  shades  of  her  own 
language,  scanty  information  on  current  topics,  her 
power  to  communicate  what  she  has  read,  and  a  few 
silly  stock  phrases,  which  I  wish  could  be  obliterated. 
The  best  scholars  seem  to  be  often  awkward,  shy,  and 
silent,  unless  drawn  out  upon  their  favorite  study ;  the 
more  frivolous  and  superficial  chatter,  indulge  in  super- 
latives, and  giggle.  Is  this  too  severe  }  A  wise  old 
bachelor,  who  has  had  uncommon  social  opportunities 
and  who  is  always  criticising  his  women  friends  in  a  way 
at  once  cynical  and  helpful,  said  to  me  the  other  day : 
"  Why  don't  you  start  a  conversation  class }  It  is  an 
art  that  is  strangely  and  sadly  neglected.  At  least  you 
can  write  about  this,  and  try  to  wake  women  to  the  fact 
that  they  do  not  converse.  They  seem  to  merely  open 
their  pretty  mouths  and  let  the  words  tumble  out,  with- 
out any  plan  or  forethought.  I  asked  a  young  lady  who 
was  attending  one  of  our  best  boarding-schools  what 
instruction  was  given  there  in  conversation,  and  she  had 
never  heard  of  such  a  thing  being  attempted."  So  he 
set  me  to  thinking  and  writing. 

Kate  Sanborn. 


234 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


CONTENTMENT  AT  HOME. 

If  you  devote  your  time  to  study  you  will  avoid  all 
the  irksomeness  of  life;  nor  will  you  be  a  burden  to 
yourself,  nor  your  society  unsupportable  to  others. 

Seneca. 


AN  IDEAL  SCHOOL. 
A  WELL-GOVERNED  school,  in  my  estimation,  is  so  well 
poised,  that  is,  so  self-poised,  that  in  the  absence  of  the 
teacher,  it  will  run  on  of  itself  till  the  nightfall,  without 
noise  or  friction.  Is  this  too  much  to  expect  ?  Fellow- 
teachers,  v/e  can  take  iron  and  brass  and  make  a  watch 
that  will  keep  time  when  its  owner  is  sound  asleep  ;  that 
will  run  on  correctly  for  a  year.  He  is  a  poor  watch- 
maker who  cannot  make  one  that  will  run  twenty-four 
hours.  Can  we  do  more  with  dead,  dumb  metal  than 
we  can  with  living,  loving,  throbbing  human  hearts } 
Can  we  accomplish  more  accurate,  definite,  reliable  re- 
sults with  our  skilled  hands  than  our  trained  minds } 
Shall  a  teacher  of  immortal  souls  yield  to  a  maker  of 
machinery.?     Nay,  verily. 

J.  DoKMAN  Steele. 


A  STRONG  PROTEST. 
Since  the  differences  and  divergencies  in  personality 
are  almost  as  diverse  and  multiplicative  as  the  atoms 
comprising  the  universe,  there  can  be  only  foolhardiness 
and  failure  in  any  attempt  at  formulating  a  general  sys- 
tem for  mental  traiaing.  None,  however  generous,  can 
be  made  sufficiently  catholic  to  cope  with  recognizable 
needs.     Schools  and  colleges,  except  in  a  few  isolated 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


235 


cases,  can,  at  best,  only  lay  the  foundation  of  what  may 
afterward,  by  individual  effort,  become  sound  and  prac- 
tical metital  culture.  ...  It  is  granted,  with  the 
utmost  readiness,  that  in  matured  and  developed  minds 
there  exists  an  element,  which  for  want  of  a  more  clearly 
descriptive  term,  we  call  individuality.  In  young  people, 
on  the  other  hand,  it  seems  to  be  the  generally  accepted 
conclusion  that  the  existence  of  this  characteristic  is 
impossible.  When  individuality,  however,  is  recognized 
in  youth,it  rarely  meets  with  anything  else  than  the  most 
unflagging  and  tireless  efforts  to  destroy  and  quench  it, 
as  if  it  was  a  thing  so  terrible  and  sinister  that  it 
menaced  church,  state,  and  all  great  and  high  human 
interests.  The  whole  aim  and  object  seems  to  be  to 
make  something  else  of  the  youthful  mind  than  that 
which  it  really  is.  A  gentle,  sensitive  child,  of  dreamy, 
poetic  temperament  and  modest  reticence,  is  scoffed, 
sneered,  and  bullied  into  an  artificial  creature  of  cold- 
ness and  indifference.  If  he  is  modest,  no  effort  is  left 
unmade  to  break  in  upon  that.  If  he  is  independent 
and  fearless,  battle  is  done  for  the  breaking  and  sub- 
version of  his  will.  The  paramount  purpose,  as  I  have 
already  said,  is,  if  one  may  be  permitted  to  pass  judg- 
ment upon  what  is,  on  every  hand,  plainly  before  one's 
eyes,  to  obliterate,  wherever  it  may  be  existent,  every 
spark,  gleam,  and  trace  of  individuality  and  originality. 
While  this,  of  course,  is  not  really  the  purpose  of  in- 
structors, it  is  in  most  cases  the  main  result  of  their 
labor.  Instructors  are  not  of  themselves  so  vastly 
wrong ;  the  system  which  they  follo^  is  where  the  fault 
is,  and  this  cannot  be  changed  until  more  than  one  hand 

is  uplifted  against  it.  George  Sand. 


236  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

If  there  is  a  real  love  of  books,  there  is  hardly  a  limit 
to  be  set  to  the  knowledge  that  may  be  acquired  from 
them  without  the  aid  of  instruction,  schools,  or  tolleges. 

Miss  Catherine  M.  Sedgwick. 


THE   OBJECTIVE  ORDER. 

Education  should  embrace  the  mindy  the  hearty  and 
the  life  of  man.  Now  the  heart,  that  is,  the  will  to- 
gether with  the  affections,  should  be  in  accordance  with 
the  mind,  and  the  life  with  the  heart.  If  the  mind  is 
thus  conformed  to  the  objective  order  of  things,  if  it 
possesses  the  serene  light  of  truth,  not  the  false  and 
confusing  lights  of  opinion  and  prejudice,  the  heart  will 
have  a  type,  as  it  were,  on  which  to  mould  itself ;  and 
the  life  will  be  a  continual  image  of  the  heart.  If  the 
life  is  to  be  a  continual  working  out  of  universal  good, 
the  heart  must  first  be  filled  with  universal  charity ;  and 
the  latter  cannot  enter  the  heart  unless  the  mind  is  so 
disposed  as  to  exclude  no  form  of  knowledge,  but  to 
embrace  all.  The  tmiversality  of  an  impartial  mind 
produces  the  universality  of  the  benevolent  heart,  and 
the  universality  of  the  benevolent  heart  produces  the 
universality  of  a  good  life.  The  child's  mind  should, 
then,  be  educated  to  recognize  all  the  connections  of 
things  which  he  is  capable  of  perceiving  at  each  period 
of  his  childhood ;  in  other  words,  all  of  the  objective 
order  which  he  is  capable  of  recognizing,  and  to  bring 
him  to  this,  the  association  of  things  m  his  mind  must 
not  be  left  to  chance,  but  be  duly  ordered,  the  most  im- 
portant coming  first,  the  less  important  afterwards. 

Antonio  Rosmini  Serbati. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


RELIGION  THE   SOURCE    OF   LEARNING. 


237 


It  is  not  accidental  that  the  actual  historical  progress 
of  mankind  in  art,  science,  philosophy  or  virtue,  should 
depend,  as  we  have  seen,  upon  some  religious  impulse 
for  its  beginnings  and  continuance.  Nor  is  it  strange 
that  schools  and  systems  of  education  should  have  had 
no  other  source.  It  is  only  surprising  when  we  fancy 
that  the  currents  of  progress  can  now  be  made  to  flow 
from  any  different  springs,  or  that  the  lamp  of  learning 
can  be  lighted  or  kept  burning  with  any  other  flame. 
If  we  are  wise  we  shall  not  only  learn,. but  be  guided  by 
lessons  which  history  and  human  nature  both  teach, 
that  education  divorced  from  religion  is  like  a  tree  sev- 
ered from  its  nourishing  roots,  which  thereby  falls  to 
the  ground,  leaving  its  leaves  to  wither,  its  fruit  to 
perish,  and  itself  to  decay.  From  such  folly  we  turn, 
leaving  the  blind  to  lead  the  blind,  not  doubting  what 
the  end  to  them  both  will  be. 

What,  then,  are  the  practical  consequences  of  this 
truth.**  What  adjustments  does  it  require  in  the  pro- 
cesses of  our  higher  education  }  It  requires  obviously 
that  the  corner-stone  and  the  top-stone  and  the  inform- 
ing law  of  our  whole  educational  fabric  should  be  Chris- 
tian faith  and  Christian  freedom,  the  faith  in  which  the 
true,  religious  life  finds  its  only  sufficient  root,  and  the 
freedom  in  which  that  same  life  finds  its  only  adequate 
expression.  We  need  Christian  faith  to  perpetuate  and 
perfect  what  Christian  faith  has  begun.  For,  even  if 
the  fabric  built  upon  this  basis  could  be  kept  standing 
when  its  foundations  were  removed,  its  increasing 
beauty  and  living  growth  would  then  be  gone.    A  Chris- 


238  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

tian  college,  therefore,  looking  not  at  transient  but  at 
permanent  ends,  sowing  seed  for  a  perennial  harvest  of 
the  farthest  science  and  the  fairest  culture,  will  be  solic- 
itous, first  of  all  to  continue  Christian.  If  it  is  to  be 
in  the  long  run  truly  successful  in  the  advancement  of 
learning,  it  will  have  the  Christian  name  written,  not 
alone  upon  its  seal  and  its  first  records,  but  graven  in 
its  life  as  ineffaceably  as  was  the  name  of  Phidias  on 
Athene's  shield. 

Julius  H.  Seelye. 

THE  TEACHINGS  OF  EXPERIENCE. 

In  this  last  stage  of  his  progress,  a  man  learns  in 
various  ways.  First,  he  learns  unconsciously  by  the 
growth  of  his  inner  powers  and  the  secret  but  steady 
accumulation  of  experience.  The  fire  o£youth  is  toned 
down  and  sobered.  The  realities  of  life  dissipate  many 
dreams,  clear  up  many  prejudices,  soften  down  many 
roughnesses.  The  difference  between  intention  and 
action,  between  anticipating  temptation  and  bearing  it, 
between  drawing  pictures  of  holiness  or  nobleness  and 
realizing  them,  between  hopes  of  success  and  reality_pf 
achievement,  is  taught  by  many  a  painful  and  many  an 
unexpected  experience.  In  short,  as  the  youth  puts 
away  childish  things,  so  does  the  man  put  away  youthful 
things.  Secondly,  the  full-grown  man  learns  by  reflec- 
tions. He  looks  inwards,  and  not  outwards  only.  He 
rearranges  the  results  of  past  experience,  re-examines 
by  the  test  of  reality  the  principles  supplied  to  him  by 
books  or  conversation,  reduces  to  intelligible  and  practi- 
cal formulas  what  he  has  hitherto  known  as  vague  gen- 
eral rules.     Ije  not  prdy^^eneralizesj  —  yotith  will  gener- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


239 


alize  wit.h.gi£at-xapidit-y,-aiid  often  with  great  acutenees, 
—  but  he  learns  to  correct  one  generahzation  by  an- 
oiher.  He  gradually  learns  to  disentangle  his  own 
thoughts,  so  as  not  to  be  led  into  foolish  inconsistencies 
by  want  of  clearness  of  purpose.  He  learns  to  dis- 
tinguish between  momentary  impulses  and  permanent 
determination  of  character.  He  learns  to  know  the 
limits  of  his  own  powers,  moral  and  intellectual ;  and 
by  slow  degrees  and  with  much  reluctance,  he  learns  to 
suspend  his  judgment,  and  to  be  content  with  ignorance 
where  knowledge  is  beyond  his  reach.  He  learns  to 
know  himself  and  other  men,  and  to  distinguish  in 
some  measure  his  own  peculiarities  from  the  leading 
features  of  humanity  which  he  shares  with  all  men.  He 
learns  to  know  both  the  worth  and  the  worthlessness  of 
the  world's  judgment  and  of  his  own.  JThirdly,  he 
learns  much  by  mistakes,  both  by  his  own  and  by  those 
of  others.  He  often  persists  in  a  wrong  cause  till  it  is 
too  late  to  mend  what  he  has  done,  and  he  learns  how 
to  use  it  and  how  to  bear  it.  His_pxinciples,.or  what 
he  thought  his  principles,  break  down  under  him^  and 
he Js  forced  to  analyze  them  in  order  to  discover  what 
aroD.unt  of  truth  they  really  contain.  He  comes  upon 
new  and  quite  unexpected  issues  of  what  he  has  done 
or  said,  and  he  has  to  profit  by  such  warnings  as  he 
receives.  His  errors  often  force  him,  as  it  were,  to  go 
back  to  school ;  not  now  with  the  happy  docility  of  a 
child,  but  with  the  chastened  submission  of  a  penitent. 
Or,  moil?  often  still,  hjs.._mistakes  inflict  a  sharp  jQhas- 
tis^nient,  which  teaches  him  a  new  lesson  without  much 
effort  jon  his  own  part  to  learn.  Lastly,  he  ..learns  much 
by   contradiction.      The   collision   of    society   compels 


240  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

him  to  state  his  opinions  clearly  ;  to  defend  them  ;•  to 
modify  them  when  indefensible  ;  perhaps  to  surrender 
them  altogether,  consciously  or  unconsciously ;  still 
more  often  to  absorb  them  into  larger  and  fuller 
thoughts,  less  forcible,  but  more  comprehensive.  The 
precision  which  is  thus  often  forced  upon  him  always 
seems  to  diminish  something  of  the  heartiness  and 
power  which  belonged  to  more  youthful  instincts ;  but 
he  gains  iiL-dix£ctness  pf_aijn.^-and  therefore  in  firmness 
of  resolution.  But  the  greatest  of  his  gains  is  what 
seems  a  loss  ;  fgr  halearns  not  to  attempt  the  solution 
of  insoluble  problems,  and  to  have  no  opinion  at  alLon 
many  points  of  the  deepest  interest.  Usually  this  takes 
the  form  of  an  abandonment  of  speculation  ;  hut_itjnay 
rise  to  the  level  of  a  philosophical  humility,  which  stops 
where  it  can  advance  no  further,  and  confesses  its.iiann_ 
weakness  in  the  presence  of  the  mysteries  of  life. 

Frederick  Temple. 


If  you  allow  yourself  to  rest  satisfied  with  present 
attainments,  however  respectable  they  may  be,  your 
mental  garments  will  soon  look  very  threadbare. 

F.   W.  TiLTON. 


THE  WORLD   STILL  YOUNG. 

I  DO  not  think  that  it  is  the  mission  of  this  age,  or  of 
any  other  particular  age,  to  lay  down  a  system  of  edu- 
cation which  shall  hold  good  for  all  ages.  Th%  basis  of 
human  nature  is,  perhaps,  permanent ;  but  not  so  the 
forms  under  which  the  spirit  of  humanity  manifests  it- 
self.     It    is    sometimes   peaceful,   sometimes  warlike, 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


241 


sometimes  religious,  sometimes  sceptical ;   and  history 
is  simply  the  record  of  its  mutations. 

"  The  eternal  Pan 
Who  layeth  the  world's  incessant  plan 
Halteth  never  in  one  shape, 
But  forever  doth  escape 
Into  new  forms." 

This  appears  to  be  the  law  of  things  throughout  the 
universe ;  and  it  is,  therefore,  no  proof  of  fickleness  or 
destructiveness,  properly  so  called,  if  the  implements 
of  human  culture  change  with  the  times,  and  the  re- 
quirements of  the  present  age  be  found  different  from 
those  of  the  preceding.  Unless  you  are  prepared  to 
say  that  the  past  world,  or  some  portion  of  it,  has  been 
the  final  expression  of  human  competency  ;  that  the 
wisdom  of  man  has  already  reached  its  climax ;  that 
the  intellect  of  to-day  possesses  feebler  powers  or  a 
narrower  scope  than  the  intellect  of  earlier  times, 
you  cannot,  with  reason,  demand  an  unconditional  ac- 
ceptance of  the  systems  of  the  past ;  nor  are  you  justi- 
fied in  divorcing  me  from  the  world  and  times  in  which 
I  live,  and  confining  my  conversation  to  the  times  gone 
by.  Who  can  blame  me  if  I  cherish  the  belief  that  the 
world  is  still  young ;  that  there  are  great  possibilities 
in  store  for  it ;  that  the  Englishman  of  to-day  is  made 
of  as  good  stuff,  and  has  as  high  and  independent  a 
vocation  to  fulfil  as  had  the  ancient  Greek  or  Roman  ? 
While  thankfully  accepting  what  antiquity  has  to  offer, 
let  us  never  forget  that  the  present  century  has  just  as 
good  a  right  to  its  forms  of  thought  and  methods  of  cul- 
ture as  any  former  centuries  had  to  theirs,  and  that  the 


242 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


same  sources  of  power  are  open  to  us  to-day  as  were 
ever  open  to  humanity  in  any  age  of  the  world. 

John  Tyndall. 


A  BIT  OF  ADVICE. 


Might  I  give  counsel  to  any  young  hearer,  I  would 
say  to  him:  **Try  to  frequent  the  company  of  your  bet- 
ters. In  books  and  life  that  is  the  most  wholesome 
society.  Learn  to  admire  rightly ;  the  great  pleasure 
of  life  is  that.  Note  what  the  good  men  admired  ;  they 
admired  good  things,  while  narrow  spirits  always  ad- 
mire basely  and  worship  meanly." 

William  M.  Thackeray. 


THE  TEACHER'S  RESPONSIBILITY. 

In  order  that  a  teacher  should  be  thoroughly  devoted 
to  his  work,  he  should  be  duly  sensible  of  its  impor- 
tance ;  he  should  believe  that  the  future  character  of 
a  country  depends  upon  the  education  of  its  children ; 
he  should  be  fully  aware  that  in  the  soft  and  virgin  soil 
of  their  souls  he  may  plant  the  shoots  of  poison  or  sow 
the  seeds  of  sweet-scented  flowers  or  of  life-giving  fruit ; 
he  should  realize  the  momentous  thought  that  the 
little,  prattling,  thoughtless  children  by  whom  he  is  sur- 
rounded are  to  become  the  men  of  the  approaching  age. 
As  a  necessary  consequence  of  all  this,  he  should  care- 
fully look  to  the  predilections  of  children.  That  child 
who  is  amusing  himself  with  drawing  triangles  and 
circles  may,  under  proper  training,  hereafter  become 
another  Pascal;  that  little  dirty  urchin  who  is  pluck- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  243 

ing  flowers  by  the  wayside  may  become  the  poet  or 
the  orator  of  his  age ;  that  thoughtful,  feeble  body  who 
is  watching  the  effect  of  the  steam,  as  it  blows  and 
puffs  from  the  tea-kettle,  may  become  another  Watt, 
destined  to  multiply  the  resources  of  our  national 
wealth  and  power;  that  ruthless  little  savage  who 
is  leading  mimic  battles  of  the  snow-storm  may  be- 
come (unless  his  evil  tendencies  are  counteracted  by 
education)  another  Napoleon,  who  may  seize  with  a 
giant  grasp  the  iron  thunderbolt  of  death,  and  on  the 
wreck  of  a  people's  hopes  and  happiness  build  himself 
up  a  terrible  monument  of  guilt  and  greatness. 

T.  Tate. 


HOW  TO   SUCCEED. 

Train  up  children  in  diligence,  if  ever  you  desire 
that  they  should  excel  in  anything.  Diligence  puts 
almost  everything  in  our  power ;  and  will,  in  time, 
make  children  capable  of  the  best  and  greatest  things. 

Archbishop  Tillotson. 


THE   SOCRATIC   METHOD. 

"The  Socratic  method"  of  instruction  was  singu- 
larly appropriate  to  the  idea  of  education  of  which  we 
have  been  speaking.  The  method  of  question  and 
answer,  beginning  with  some  simple  principle  which 
was  well  understood  and  acknowledged  by  both  par- 
ties, and  progressing,  step  by  step,  through  unforeseen 
stages  to  an  unexpected  but  unavoidable  conclusion,  in 
all  which  process  the  minds  of  both  teacher  and  pupil 


244 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


are  not  only  awakened  to  their  utmost  activity,  but  act 
and  re-act  upon  each  other  in  direct  intercourse  and 
perpetual  intercommunion.  This  method,  if  not  origi- 
nated by  Socrates,  was  conducted  with  such  consum- 
mate skill  to  such  brilliant  results,  that  it  has  ever 
since  been  called  "the  Socratic  method."  Socrates 
knew  that  influence,  to  be  deep,  must  be  living  and  per- 
sonal ;  that  instruction,  to  be  effective,  must  be  appropri- 
ate and  direct.  He  knew  that  if  he  would  mould  the 
character  and  the  conduct  of  the  young  to  his  liking, 
mind  must  grapple  with  mind,  and  heart  beat  to  heart, 
and  spirit  interpenetrate  spirit.  This  could  be  done 
only  by  oral  communication.  This  was  done,  and  done 
effectually,  by  the  Socratic  method.  "When  I  heard 
Pericles  or  any  other  great  orator,"  says  the  pleasure- 
loving  yet  aspiring  Alcibiades,  "  I  was  entertained  and 
delighted,  and  I  felt  that  he  had  spoken  well.  But  no 
mortal  speech  has  ever  excited  in  me  such  emotions  as 
are  kindled  by  this  magician.  Whenever  I  hear  him  I 
am,  as  it  were,  charmed  and  fettered.  My  heart  leaps 
like  an  inspired  Corybant.  My  inmost  soul  is  stung  by 
his  words  as  by  the  bite  of  a  serpent ;  it  is  indignant  at 
its  own  rude  and  ignoble  character.  I  often  weep  tears 
of  regret,  and  think  how  vain  and  inglorious  is  the  life 
I  lead.  Nor  am  I  the  only  one  that  weeps  like  a  child 
and  despairs  of  himself.  Many  others  are  affected  in 
the  same  way."  No  book  can  speak  with  such  power 
to  the  heart  and  conscience  of  the  stifdent.  No  mere 
text-book  teacher  ever  exerts  such  an  influence.  He 
must  first  digest  his  books  —  all  books,  the  books  of 
men  and  the  books  of  God  —  in  his  own  soul,  and  then 
infuse  himself  into  the  souls  of  his  pupils.     And  before 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 


245 


he  can  do  this,  he  must  enter  into  their  minds,  draw 
them  out  and  absorb  them,  as  it  were,  into  himself. 
Then  he  can  understand  them,  and  insinuate  himself 
into  them.  Then  they  can  understand  him,  and  ac- 
cept his  teachings  and  receive  his  impress.  It  must  be 
a  mutual  process,  action  and  reaction,  question  and 
answer.     Such  was  the  Socratic  method. 

William  S.  Tyler. 


THE  DUTY   OF   SCHOLARSHIP. 

Much  as  I  value  the  knowledge  of  the  principles 
which  underlie  the  art  of  teaching,  I  set  a  far  higher 
value  on  the  thorough  mastery  of  the  subjects  taught. 
I  would  much  rather  have  my  child  instructed  by  a 
teacher  who  had  mastered  the  subject  taught,  and  who 
trusted  to  his  familiarity  with  it  in  all  its  parts  for  sug- 
gestions as  to  the  best  method  of  presenting  it,  than 
by  one  who,  with  an  inferior  equipment  of  knowledge, 
made  it  an  invariable  rule  of  practice  to  proceed  from 
the  concrete  to  the  abstract,  from  the  known  to  the 
unknown  in  his  teaching.  And  so  I  say  that  the  first 
duty  of  the  teacher,  and  the  one  which  demands  special 
emphasis  at  this  time,  is  the  duty  of  scholarship. 

John  Tetlow. 


A  MATURE   MIND. 

A  VIGOROUS  and  mature  mind  is  one  in  which  the  real 
relations  of  things,  and  not  their  accidental  connections, 
bring  them  forward  and  determine  either  their  continu- 
ance as  objects  of  thought  or  their  speedy  dismissal. 

Isaac  Taylor. 


246  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

TRAINING  THE  OBJECT  OF  EDUCATION. 

It  is  well  to  bear  in  mind  that  principles  may  be 
plain,  though  the  working  out  of  the  principles  may  be 
far  from  plain,  but  may  become,  for  a  time  and  in  single 
instances,  a  matter  of  almost  pure  faith,  as  every  failure 
is  visible,  and  success  very  often  not  so.  It  cannot, 
however,  admit  of  doubt  that  training  is  the  object  of 
education,  however  people  may  differ  about  the  means. 
It  can  scarcely  be  denied  that  spreading  the  efforts  over 
too  wide  a  surface  is  not  training.  This  narrows  the 
question  to  some  such  limits  as  these.  Let  the  mind 
be  exercised  in  one  noble  subject  —  a  subject,  if  such 
can  be  found,  capable  of  calling  into  play  reasoning  pow- 
ers, fancy,  imagination,  strength,  activity,  and  endur- 
ance, and  be  sure  that  in  the  intervals  of  work  there 
will  be  plenty  of  time  for  less  exhaustive  pursuits.  The 
weak  man's  work  is  the  strong  man's  play.  If  the  sub- 
ject also  itself  embraces  a  wide  field  of  knowledge,  so 
much  the  better ;  working  in  a  pretty  country  is  better 
than  working  in  a  dull  one.  The  universal  consent  of 
many  ages  has  found  such  a  subject  in  the  study  of 
Greek  and  Latin  literature  —  the  classics,  as  they  are 
familiarly  called. 

Edward  Thring. 


A  MISFORTUNE. 


Important  as  natural  history,  and  especially  physi- 
ology, may  be,  I  venture  to  wish  rather  than  to  hope 
that  the  older  studies  which  relate  to  the  mind  may 
retain  that  supremacy  which  seems  rightly  to  belong  to 
them  in  comparison  with  all  that  relates  to  the  structure 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS, 


247 


of  men  and  animals.  A  very  distinguished  scholar  has 
startled  us  lately  by  recording  the  fear  that  the  knowl- 
edge of  Greek  can  hardly  be  expected  to  maintain  its 
present  level  in  England  ;  many  persons  will  receive 
this  expression  of  opinion,  from  a  calm,  well-qualified 
judge,  with,  the  pain  which  results  from  the  conviction 
that  it  is  sound,  and  that  the  principle  may  be  extended 
further.  A  decline  in  the  state  of  Greek  scholarship 
implies  even  more  than  the  failure  of  esteem  for  the 
most  valuable  and  influential  of  all  languages  ;  it  in- 
volves with  it  a  gradual  but  certain  decay  of  general 
culture,  the  sacrifice  of  learning  to  science,  the  neglect 
of  the  history  of  man  and  of  thought  for  the  sake  of 
facts  relating  to  the  external  world. 

I.   TODHUNTER. 


The  first  condition  of  success  is  an  honest  receptivity 
and  a  willingness  to  abandon  all  preconceived  notions, 
however  cherished,  if  they  be  found  to  contradict  the 
truth. 

John  Tyndalu 

EQUAL  EDUCATION  FOR  MEN  AND  WOMEN. 

Schools  for  general  culture  are  designed  for  the  de- 
velopment of  the  individual  to  secure  mental  growth 
and  power,  facility  and  justness  of  mental  action.  We 
find  in  the  intellectual  capabilities  necessary  to  enable 
either  sex  to  gain  the  advantages  of  such  schools  no 
difference.  Such  specialties  as  divide  our  professional 
schools  from  the  schools  for  general  culture  will  be  found 
fit  or  unfit  for  the  training  of  the  feminine  mind,  accord- 


248  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

ing  to  the  uses  to  which,  in  a  business  or  professional 
way,  that  mind  is  to  be  put,  just  as  would  be  the  case 
were  a  masculine  mind  considered.  The  whole  field  of 
literary  and  scientific  culture  lies  equally  open  to  either. 
With  equal  right  the  highest  training  of  these  powers  is 
freely  conceded. 

H.  S.  Tarbell. 


EARLY  INSTRUCTION  IN  MUSIC. 

Such  is  the  constitution  of  society  at  the  present  day 
that  no  education  can  be  called  finished  which  does  not 
embrace  some  knowledge  of  music.  For  the  acquisition 
of  its  principles  the  period  of  school  life  offers  the  great- 
est facilities.  The  mind  is  plastic,  and  in  its  most  re- 
ceptive state ;  the  emotions,  the  sympathies  are  in  full 
play.  Voice  and  ear,  so  obedient  to  external  impres- 
sions, are  flexible  and  susceptible  to  cultivation.  If 
there  be  any  supposed  incapacity,  any  lack  of  "  musical 
ear,"  as  it  is  called,  it  may  with  almost  absolute  cer- 
tainty be  overcome.  It  frequently  happens  that  children, 
apparently  deficient  in  ear  and  voice,  rapidly  attain  both 
under  suitable  training,  and  ultimately  excel  those  more 
gifted  by  nature.  A  great  mistake  is  therefore  com- 
mitted in  excluding  any  child  from  the  benefits  of 
musical  instruction  on  account  of  apparent  incompe- 
tency. 

The  surroundings  of  the  schoolroom  are  also  exceed- 
ingly favorable  to  real  progress.  The  association  of 
numbers,  the  laudable  ambition  to  excel,  excited  by  class 
practice,  afford  a  powerful  stimulus,  and  give  the  teacher 
an  advantage  which  individual  tuition  can  never  acquire. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


249 


.  .  .  With  children  the  teacher  has  a  power  of  creation  ; 
with  adults  he  is  dependent  on  circumstances.  In  one 
case  he  educates,  in  the  other  he  has  to  amend  the 
defects  of  education.  Usually  with  the  best  efforts  of 
both  teacher  and  pupil,  only  respectable  mediocrity  can 
be  attained.  The  postponement  of  musical  instruction 
in  a  great  measure  accounts  for  the  superficiality  in 
music  which  so  generally  prevails.  It  must  account  for 
the  toleration  of  musical  charlatans,  novices  in  musical 
science,  who  startle  by  unheard-of  feats  in  execution, 
and  who  are  patronized  and  admired  by  the  multitudes 
who  prefer  novelty  and  brilliancy  to  a  substantial  and 
consistent  culture. 

Eben  Tourjee. 


In  a  well-organized  society,  though  no  one  can  attain 
to  universal  knowledge,  it  should  nevertheless  be  pos- 
sible to  learn  everything. 


Talleyrand. 


PHYSICS  AND   CULTURE. 

By  the  study  of  physics  we  have  opened  to  us  treas- 
uries of  power  of  which  antiquity  never  dreamed ;  we 
lord  it  over  Matter,  but  in  so  doing  we  have  become 
better  acquainted  with  the  laws  of  Mind ;  for  to  the 
mental  philosopher  Nature  furnishes  a  screen  against 
which  the  human  spirit  projects  its  own  image,  and 
thus  becomes  capable  of  self-inspection. 

Thus,  then,  as  a  means  of  intellectual  culture,  the 
study  of  physics  exercises  and  sharpens  observation ; 
it  brings  the  most  exhaustive  logic  into  play;  it  com- 


250  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

pares,  abstracts,  and  generalizes,  and  provides  a  mental 
imagery  admirably  suited  to  these  processes.  The 
strictest  precision  of  thought  is  everywhere  enforced, 
and  prudence,  foresight,  and  sagacity  are  demanded. 
By  its  appeals  to  experiment,  it  continually  checks 
itself,  and  builds  upon  a  sure  foundation. 

Thus  far,  we  have  regarded  the  study  of  physics  as 
an  agent  of  intellectual  culture ;  but,  like  other  things 
in  nature,  it  subserves  more  than  a  single  end.  The 
colors  of  the  clouds  delight  the  eye,  and  no  doubt 
accomplish  moral  purposes  also ;  but  the  selfsame 
clouds  hold  within  their  fleeces  the  moisture  by  which 
our  fields  are  rendered  fruitful.  The  sunbeams  excite 
our  interest  and  invite  our  investigation  ;  but  they  also 
extend  their  beneficent  influences  to  our  fruits  and 
corn,  and  thus  accomplish  not  only  intellectual  ends, 
but  minister,  at  the  same  time,  to  our  material  necessi- 
ties. And  so  it  is  with  scientific  research.  While  the 
love  of  science  is  a  sufficient  incentive  to  the  pursuit  of 
science,  and  the  investigator,  in  the  prosecution  of  his 
inquiries,  is  raised  above  all  material  considerations, 
the  result  of  his  labors  may  exercise  a  potent  influence 
upon  the  physical  condition  of  man. 

John  Tyndall. 


HABITS   IN   THE   GRISTLE. 

"  How  can  people  remember  to  turn  out  their  toes  at 
every  step  all  their  lives.?"  was  the  question  of  a  little 
fellow  to  his  mother,  when  she  was  seeking  to  impress 
upon  him  the  duty  of  attending  to  his  "walk  "  ;  and  he 
had  to  be  told  that  they  do  not  remember,  but  that  they 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  25 1 

get  into  such  a  strong  habit  of  doing  what  she  recom- 
mended, that  it  would  be  unnatural  for  them  to  do 
otherwise.  But  it  is  quite  similar  in  matters  of  more 
importance ;  so  it  is  only  when  the  student  is  caught 
early  enough,  and  trained  thoroughly  enough,  that  the 
right  matter  and  manner  of  discourse  will  become 
habitual  with  him,  and  he  will  be  able  to  use  all  the 
finest  qualities  of  style  and  all  the  best  graces  of  elocu- 
tion unconsciously  and  as  matters  of  course ;  and  it  is 
only  then  that  they  will  be  of  the  highest  service  to 
him. 

Mark  the  qualifications,  however.  He  must  be  caught 
early  enough.  Attention  to  these  things,  as  ends  in 
themselves,  will  do  him  grievous  harm  at  a  later  stage 
in  his  history,  when,  for  example,  he  is  in  the  thick  of 
his  duties  as  a  preacher  and  pastor,  or  in  the  midst  of 
multitudinous  engagements  at  the  bar.  The  effect 
then  will  be  to  spoil  nature,  while  yet  he  never  can 
acquire  such  ease  as  to  make  art  natural.  It  will  make 
him  stilted,  self-conscious,  and  manneristic.  If  we 
wished  to  injure  a  preacher  who  is  in  actual  work, 
one  very  sure  way  of  doing  so  would  be  to  set  him 
then  to  the  study  of  these  things  ;  but,  on  the  other 
hand,  if  we  desired  to  prepare  a  young  man  for  doing 
effective  service  as  a  speaker,  we  should  take  care 
that  while  he  is  as  yet  in  his  formative  stage,  and, 
so  to  speak,  in  the  gristle,  with  his  habits  yet  to  be 
acquired,  he  should  be  committed  to  the  care  of  a  wise 
teacher,  to  learn  the  arts  of  reasoning  and  composition, 
and,  if  possible,  to  that  of  a  still  wiser  teacher,  to  take 
lessons  in  elocution. 

William  M.  Taylor. 


252 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


CLEAR  THOUGHT,   CORRECT  JUDGMENT. 

If  we  have  made  mistakes,  careful  study  may  teach 
us  better;  if  we  have  quarrelled  about  words,  the  en- 
lightenment of  the  understanding  is  the  best  means  to 
show  us  our  folly ;  if  we  have  vainly  puzzled  our  intel- 
lects with  subjects  beyond  human  cognizance,  better 
knowledge  of  ourselves  will  help  us  to  be  humbler. 
Life,  indeed,  is  higher  than  all  else ;  and  no  service 
that  man  can  render  to  his  fellows  is  to  be  compared 
with  the  heavenly  power  of  a  life  of  holiness.  But  next 
to  that  must  be  ranked  whatever  tends  to  make  men 
think  clearly  and  judge  correctly.  So  valuable,  even 
above  all  things  (excepting  only  godliness),  is  clear 
thought,  that  the  labors  of  the  statesman  are  far  below 
those  of  the  philosopher  in  duration,  in  power,  and  in 
beneficial  results.  Thought  is  now  higher  than  action, 
unless  action  be  inspired  with  the  very  breath  of  heaven ; 
for  we  are  now  men,  governed  by  principles,  if  governed 
at  all ;  and  cannot  rely  any  longer  on  the  impulses  of 
youth  or  the  discipline  of  childhood. 


Frederick  Temple. 


EDUCATING  CONDITIONS. 

We  prolong  life  and  growth  by  the  food  we  eat  at 
stated  times  and  in  formal  and  in  conventional  ways. 
But  it  is  not  only  by  the  processes  of  table-life  that  we 
live  and  grow.  There  are,  besides  our  meals,  the  air 
we  breathe  every  moment,  sunlight,  sleep,  clothing,  and 
the  artificial  heating  of  the  atmosphere  which  we  keep 
up.     After  the  same  manner  we  are  educated,  not  by 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  253 

specific  acts  of  appointed  teachers,  but  by  every  hour 
we  live,  by  every  breath  we  draw,  by  every  object  we 
see,  by  every  word  we  hear,  and  by  the  intellectual, 
moral,  social,  yea,  even  the  physical  atmosphere  which 
surrounds  us.  It  is  a  serious  problem  in  true  pedagogy : 
How  shall  we  select,  apply,  and  regulate  the  educating 
"conditions"?  And  it  is  a  question  for  the  people 
rather  than  for  the  pedagogues  to  answer. 

J.  H.  Vincent. 


HOW  TO   TEACH   MORALITY. 

Morality  must  be  taught  as  a  real  science,  whose 
principles  will  be  demonstrated  to  the  reason  of  all  men 
and  to  that  of  all  ages.  It  is  only  in  this  way  that  it 
will  resist  all  trials. 

Talleyrand. 


RELIGIOUS  INSTRUCTION. 

There  is,  in  the  present  organization  of  the  world, 
but  one  single  species  of  instruction  which  is  applicable 
to  all  classes,  and  embraces  all  human  relations ;  namely, 
religion.  It  awakens  and  maintains  the  consciousness 
of  an  inner  and  higher  existence,  which  no  chains  can 
reach  and  no  oppression  can  subdue ;  and  thus  is  the 
most  efficient  teacher  of  true  freedom,  and  of  the  recog- 
nition of  that  only  equality  which  sustains  all  the  civic 
relations,  and  exists  in  the  sentiments  even  of  the 
poorest.  •• 

VoN  Gentz. 


254 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


MOODY,  AND  NOT   INGERSOLL. 

Mental  development  is  not  necessarily  a  blessing  to 
the  world.  It  poisons  or  sweetens  according  to  the  use 
made  of  the  power  developed.  An  Ingersoll  poisons 
the  world  at  a  thousand  dollars  a  night,  a  Moody  helps 
the  poor,  depressed,  conscience-stricken  sinner  nearer 
God.  Each  has  studied  with  care  the  art  of  influencing 
the  mind  and  heart  of  man.  Mental  development  is  of 
such  a  nature  that  it  needs  to  have  character  develop- 
ment go  hand  in  hand  with  it. 

A.   E.  WiNSHIP. 


"Drink  deep,  or  taste  not,"  is  a  direction  fully  as 
applicable  to  religion,  if  we  would  find  it  a  source  of 
pleasure,  as  it  is  to  knowledge.  A  little  religion  is,  it 
must  be  confessed,  apt  to  make  men  gloomy,  as  a  little 
knowledge  is  to  render  them  vain. 

William  Wilberforce. 


INTELLECTUAL  DEVELOPMENT. 

Every  one,  whatever  his  position,  may  well  be  sup- 
posed to  possess  the  means  of  developing  his  own 
powers,  and  arriving  at  the  standing  of  an  intellectual 
man.  There  is  nothing  in  the  nature  of  any  occupation 
that  renders  such  an  expectation  extravagant.  The 
uncles  of  Hugh  Miller  were  highly  cultivated  men,  read- 
ing the  best  books,  concerning  one  of  whom  he  remarks, 
"There  are  professors  of  natural  history  who  know  less 
of  living  nature  than  was  known  j^y  uncle  Sandy"  ;  and 
yet  one  of  them  was  a  harness-maker,  and  the  other  a 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


255 


Stone-mason,  each  laboring  industriously  at  his  calling, 
for  daily  bread,  for  six  days  in  the  week. 

But  if  we  take  no  account  of  the  acquisition  of  knowl- 
edge and  confine  ourselves  simply  to  intellectual  culture, 
I  apprehend  that  we  shall  arrive  at  substantially  the  same 
result.  Suppose  that  our  sole  object  is  to  develop  the 
powers  of  the  human  mind.  We  must,  then,  first  ask, 
What  are  these  powers  .-^  It  will  be  sufficient  for  our 
present  purpose  to  consider  the  following,  as  they  are 
allowed  to  be  the  most  important :  Perception,  by  which 
we  arrive  at  a  knowledge  of  the  phenomena  of  the  world 
without  us ;  Consciousness,  by  which  we  become  aware 
of  the  changes  of  the  world  within  us ;  Abstraction  and 
Generalization,  by  which  our  knowledge  of  individuals 
becomes  the  knowledge  of  classes ;  Reasoning,  by  which 
we  use  the  known  to  discover  the  unknown  ;  Imagina- 
tion, by  which  we  construct  pictures  in  poetry  and  ideals 
in  philosophy;  and  Memory,  by  which  all  these  various 
forms  of  past  knowledge  are  recalled  and  made  available 
for  the  present. 

Now  if  such  be  the  powers  conferred  on  us  by  our 
Creator,  it  must,  I  think,  be  admitted  that  each  of  them 
is  designed  for  a  particular  purpose,  and  that  a  human 
mind  would  be  fatally  deficient  were  any  one  of  them 
wanting.  In  our  cultivation  of  mind,  then,  we  must 
have  respect  not  to  one  or  two  of  them,  but  to  all; 
since  that  is  the  most  perfect  mind  in  which  all  of  them 
are  the  most  fully  developed.  If  then,  we  desire  to  im- 
prove the  intellect  of  man  by  study,  it  is  obvious  that 
that  study  will  be  the  best  adapted  to  our  purpose  which 
cultivates,  not  one,  but  all  of  these  faculties,  and  culti- 
vates  them   all   most   thoroughly.      We   cultivate   our 


256  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

powers  of  every  kind  by  exercise,  and  that  study  will 
most  effectually  aid  us  in  the  work  of  self-development, 
which  requires  the  original  exercise  of  the  greatest 
number  of  them. 

Supposing  this  to  be  admitted,  which  I  think  will  not 
be  denied,  the  question  will  arise,  What  studies  are  best 
adapted  to  our  purpose  ?  This  is  a  question  which  can- 
not be  settled  by  authority.  We  are  just  as  capable  of 
deciding  it  as  the  men  who  have  gone  before  us.  They 
were  once,  like  ourselves,  men  of  the  present,  and  their 
wisdom  has  not  certainly  received  any  addition  from  the 
slumber  of  centuries.  They  may  have  been  able  to  judge 
correctly  for  the  time  that  then  was,  but  could  they  re- 
visit us  now,  they  might  certainly  be  no  better  able 
than  ourselves  to  judge  correctly  for  the  time  that  now 
is.  If  any  of  us  should  be  heard  of  two  hundred  years 
from  hence,  it  would  surely  be  strange  folly  for  the  men 
of  A.D.  2054  to  receive  our  sayings  as  oracles,  concern- 
ing the  conditions  of  society  which  will  be  then  existing. 
God  gives  to  every  age  the  means  for  perceiving  its  own 
wants  and  discovering  the  best  manner  of  supplying 
them ;  and  it  is,  therefore,  certainly  best  that  every  age 
should  decide  such  questions  for  itself.  We  cannot, 
certainly,  decide  them  by  authority. 

Francis  Wayland. 


WHY  NOT   BOTH? 


The  study  of  elementary  mathematics,  therefore,  along 
with  the  study  of  classical  authors,  ought  to  be  impera- 
tively required  by  all  universities.  To  separate  these 
two  branches  of  study,  and  to  allow  students  to  neglect 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


257 


one  of  them,  because  some  persons  have  a  taste  for  one, 
and  some  persons  for  the  other,  is  to  abdicate  the  func- 
tions of  education  altogether.  Universities  and  colleges 
do  not  exist  merely  for  the  purpose  of  enabling  men  to 
do  what  they  best  like  to  do  ;  or  for  the  purpose  of  offer- 
ing and  awarding  prizes  for  trials  of  strength,  in  modes 
selected  by  the  combatants ;  their  business  is  the  gen- 
eral cultivation  of  all  the  best  faculties  of  those  who  are 
committed  to  their  charge,  and  the  preservation  and 
promotion  of  the  general  culture  of  mankind.  And  it 
is  certain,  that  of  all  the  persons  who  derive  advantage 
from  a  university  education,  none  are  more  benefited 
than  those  who,  with  a  general  aptitude  for  learning, 
are  prevented  by  the  requisitions  of  such  institutions 
from  confining  their  exertions  to  one  favorite  channel. 
The  man  of  mathematical  genius  who,  by  the  demands 
of  his  college  or  his  university,  is  led  to  become  familiar 
with  the  best  Greek  and  Latin  classics,  becomes  thus  a 
man  of  liberal  education,  instead  of  being  merely  a  pow- 
erful calculator.  The  elegant  classical  scholar,  who  is 
compelled  in  the  same  way  to  master  the  propositions 
of  geometry  and  mechanics,  acC[uires  among  them  habits 
of  rigor  of  thought  and  connection  of  reasoning.  He 
thus  becomes  fitted  to  deal  with  any  subject  with  which 
reason  can  be  concerned,  and  to  estimate  the  prospects 
which  science  offers  ;  instead  of  being  kept  down  to  the 
level  of  the  mere  scholar,  learned  in  the  literature  of  the 
past,  but  illogical  and  incoherent  in  his  thoughts,  and 
incapable  of  grappling  with  the  questions  which  the 
present  and  the  future  suggest.  To  neglect  to  demand 
a  combination  of  these  two  elements,  would  be  to  let 
slip  the  only  machinery  by  which  universities,  as  the 


258  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

general    cultivators    of    the    mind,   can   execute   their 
office. 

William  Whewell. 


There  is  no  business,  no  avocation  whatever,  which 
will  not  permit  a  man,  who  has  an  inclination,  to  give  a 
little  time  every  day  to  the  studies  of  his  youth. 

WVTTENBACH. 


EYES  AND  NO  EYES. 

Moreover,  taking  education  in  its  broad  sense  as  the 
training  of  all  the  powers  that  go  to  make  up  the  man, 
I  would  point  out  how  much  science  contributes  towards 
increasing  the  powers  of  the  senses.  All  science  is 
based,  some  one  has  said,  on  the  fact  that  we  have  great 
curiosity  and  very  weak  eyes ;  and  science  gives  men  a 
marvellous  extension  of  the  power  and  range  of  the 
acuteness  of  those  eyes.  "Eyes  and  no  eyes"  is  the 
title  of  an  old  story ;  and  it  scarcely  seems  too  strong  a 
way  of  marking  the  difference  between  the  powers  of 
perception  of  a  cultivated  naturalist,  and  those  of  the 
ordinary  gentleman  ignorant  of  everything  in  nature. 
To  the  one  the  stars  of  heaven  and  the  stones  on  earth, 
the  forms  of  the  hills  and  the  flowers  in  the  hedges,  are 
a  constant  source  of  that  great  and  peculiar  pleasure 
derived  from  intelligence.  And  day  by  day  do  I  see 
how  boys  increase  their  range  of  sight,  and  that  not  only 
of  the  things  we  teach  them  to  see,  but  they  outrun  us, 
and  discover  for  themselves.  And  the  power  once 
gained  can  never  be  lost.  I  know  many  instances  of 
boys  whose  eyes  were  opened  at  school  by  the  ordinary 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  259 

natural-science  lectures,  who  have  since  found  great 
pleasure  and  constant  occupation  in  some  branch  of 
scientific  study. 

J.  M.  Wilson. 


BRAINS,  SIR. 

The  truth  is,  that  what  man  most  needs  for  the  busi- 
ness and  labor  of  life  is,  not  so  much  specific  knowl- 
edge, as  mental  aptitude  and  power.  "  Education," 
says  Mill,  "  makes  a  man  a  more  intelligent  shoemaker, 
if  that  be  his  occupation,  but  not  by  teaching  him  how 
to  make  shoes  ;  it  does  so  by  the  mental  exercise  it 
gives  and  the  habits  it  impresses."  The  abiding,  prac- 
tical result  of  school-training  is  soul-power.  A  knowl- 
edge of  the  facts  and  principles  relating  to  a  given 
pursuit  is  very  important,  but  higher  than  this  is  that 
developed  strength  and  ability,  that  power  of  discern- 
ment and  application,  which  can  change  the  dead  facts 
of  knowledge  into  the  living  realities  of  human  action 
and  endeavor.  Knowledge  may  guide  and  enlighten, 
but  discipline  gives  acumen,  strength,  self-poise,  grasp, 
inspiration;  and  these  are  the  lucky  winners  of  success 
in  all  the  conflicts  and  emergencies  of  life.  The  super- 
ficial empiricist,  with  a  stock  of  scientific  facts  in  his 
head,  but  with  no  clear  insight  into  their  causes  and 
relations,  is  liable  to  blunder  in  every  new  application  of 
his  knowledge.  Practical  facts,  to  be  of  practical  utility 
for  the  purposes  of  guidance,  must  be  applied  by  an 
intelligent  mind.  ''  With  brains,  sir,"  was  Mr.  Opie's 
reply  to  the  student  who  wished  to  know  with  what  he 
mixed  his  paints,  and  this  answer  contains  the  true 
practical   philosophy  of   both   art   and   business.     The 


26o  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

prime  want  in  getting  a  living,  which  Mr.  Froude 
makes  the  chief  end  of  life  is,  "brains,  sir,"  —  a  mind 
keen-sighted  and  far-sighted,  steady  in  aim  and  purpose, 
and  full  of  faith.  Thought  is  the  highest  practical  re- 
sult of  intellectual  training.  This  is  the  alchemy  that 
changes  plodding  toil  to  many-handed  industry,  and 
makes  the  brain  of  labor  stronger  than  its  muscles.  It 
was  Prussian  brains  that  won  on  the  fields  of  Sadowa 
and  Sedan. 

E.  E.  White. 


THE  CLASSICS  AND   MORE  TOO. 

Good  literature  is,  perhaps,  on  the  whole,  the  most 
enduring  of  all  the  products  of  human  activity.  Dead, 
we  call  the  languages  of  Greece  and  Rome,  and  it  is 
the  fashion  now  to  ridicule  the  idea  of  devoting  so  much 
time  in  our  schools  and  colleges  to  the  study  of  dead 
Greek  and  Latin.  The  ''  new  education,"  so  called,  lauds 
the  study  of  science  above  the  study  of  the  ancient  clas- 
sics ;  the  study  of  nature,  that  is  to  say,  above  the  study 
of  man.  But  is  not  man  at  least  a  part  of  nature }  And 
is  not  language  the  noblest  outward  attribute  of  man } 
Science  includes,  for  instance,  what  used  to  be  called 
natural  history.  The  devotees  of  this  branch  of  scientific 
inquiry  think  it  a  not  unworthy  employment  of  time  to 
spend  years,  or  perhaps  a  life,  in  observing  and  discuss- 
ing the  habits  of  some  single  species  of  the  lower  ani- 
mals. It  might  very  well  happen  that  an  ichthyologist 
would  reckon  it  a  good  account  to  render  of  himself  if, 
as  the  result  of  investigations  covering  years  of  his  life, 
he  is  able  to  present  to  the  world  at  last  an  approxi- 
mately exhaustive  enumeration,  description,  classifica- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  ,  261 

tion  of  the  various  fossil  and  extinct  species  of  fishes 
that  may  be  found,  in  faint  traces  of  their  prehistoric 
existence,  among  the  stratified  rocks  of  the  planet. 

We  are  far  from  wishing  to  disparage  the  value  of 
such  scientific  explorations.  By  all  means  let  us  learn 
the  most  we  can  of  whatever  there  is  to  be  known.  But 
surely  man  himself  also  is  one,  and  a  not  insignificant 
one,  among  animals,  and  it  is  science  —  why  not }  —  to 
study  man  in  the  monuments  that  he  has  left  behind 
him  from  the  distant  ages  of  his  life  and  activity  on  the 
earth.  The  languages  in  which  the  ruling  races  of 
mankind  did  their  speaking  and  their  writing,  genera- 
tion after  generation,  the  literatures  which  embalmed 
for  all  future  time  the  thought,  the  feeling,  the  fancy, 
and  the  recorded  actions  of  those  myriad  millions  of  the 
foremost  of  our  fellow-men  —  surely,  say  we,  these  lan- 
guages and  these  literatures  are  worthy  of  the  attention 
from  us  that  they  have  commanded  and  that  they  com- 
mand, if  it  be  only  on  the  score  of  their  being  a  part  of 
science  itself.  Is  not  man,  even  as  just  an  interesting 
animal,  an  object  of  study  at  least  equal  in  importance 
to  fishes }  And  shall  we  not  continue,  as  lovers  of  sci- 
ence, if  no  longer  as  classical  linguists,  to  teach  our 
children  how  the  world's  gray  fathers  spoke  and  wrote, 
and  what  they  thought,  felt,  fancied  t  And  this,  although 
their  languages  be  now  dead,  if  languages  can  indeed  be 
dekd  that  live  in  literatures  which  are  immortal. 

W.  C.  Wilkinson. 


MATHEMATICS   PROMOTES  CIVILIZATION. 
Thus  the  experiment  on  education,  which  has  been 
going  on  from  the  beginning  of  Greek  civilization  to 


262  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

the  present  day,  appears  to  be  quite  distinct  and  consis- 
tent in  its  result.  And  the  lesson  we  learn  from  it  is 
this  :  that  so  far  as  civilization  is  connected  with  the 
advance  and  diffusion  of  human  knowledge,  civilization 
flourishes  when  the  prevalent  education  is  mathematical, 
and  fades  when  philosophy  is  the  subject  most  pre- 
ferred. We  find  abundant  confirmation  of  the  belief, 
that  education  has  a  strong  influence  upon  the  progress 
of  civilization ;  and  we  find  that  the  influence  follows  a 
settled  rule ;  when  the  education  is  practical  teaching, 
it  is  a  genuine  culture,  tending  to  increased  fertility  and 
vigor ;  when  it  is  speculative  teaching,  it  appears  that, 
however  the  effect  is  produced,  men's  minds  do,'n  some 
way  or  other,  lose  that  force  and  clearness  on  which 
intellectual  progression  depends. 

WiLXXAM    WhEWELL. 


TRADE  SCHOOLS. 


Trade  schools  have  not  played  much  of  a  part  in  the 
United  States.  The  pupils  of  our  schools,  generally 
speaking,  do  not  know,  and  cannot  know,  what  they  are 
to  do  in  life  ;  and  the  notion  has  been  widely  spread 
that  it  is  well  that  all  the  teaching  that  is  given  in 
school  should  be  of  a  general  character,  such  as  is  fitted 
to  train  the  mind  in  the  best  way,  and  that  the  pupil 
should  be  left  to  acquire  subsequently  to  school  and  'in- 
dependently of  it,  the  special  knowledge  and  the  special 
skill  needed  for  that  occupation  which  he  shall,  as 
things  turn  out,  come  to  adopt.  This  has  been  true  in 
a  high  degree  in  the  past.  How  about  the  future  .-*  Is 
it  desirable  that  trade  schools  should  now  be  grafted  on 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS,  263 

to  our  system  ?  Has  the  time  come  in  the  development 
of  our  people,  when  it  should  be  taken  for  granted  that 
a  boy  or  a  girl  is  to  pursue  a  certain  occupation  in  life, 
and  that  his  or  her  education  in  school  should  be 
directed  to  that  end  ? 

Francis  A.  Walker. 


MORAL  INSTRUCTION. 

There  is  the  greater  need  that  moral  instruction  in 
this  country  be  given  in  the  public  school  and  to  all 
classes,  because  the  changes  in  society  are  so  rapid  and 
continued.  If  we  had  here  higher  classes  and  lower 
classes,  which  approached,  as  in  Europe,  somewhat  to 
the  immovable  form  of  castes  ;  if  the  child,  as  a  regular 
thing,  took  the  calling  and  position  of  the  parent, 
there  would  be  a  greater  simplicity  of  moral  instruction 
possible.  Without  fail,  on  that  supposition,  unchange- 
able habits  of  thinking,  unalterable  rules  of  conduct, 
would  form  themselves  in  each  stratum  of  society,  and 
instruction  within  each  stratum  would  be  confined 
practically  to  the  correction  of  the  errors  that  might 
there  grow  up.  But  as  our  country  is,  there  are  no 
fixed  grades  of  society.  All  positions  are  open  to  all, 
and  thus  there  may  be  brought  by  each  new-comer  to 
his  new  sphere  of  life  some  new  opinion  to  correct,  or 
to  deprave  the  standard  already  existing.  We  must 
educate  all,  then,  on  the  universal  principles  of  moral- 
ity applicable  to  all  places  in  life,  to  the  servant's  place 
and  the  master's,  to  the  citizen's  and  the  legislator's, 
to  the  farmer's  and  the  merchant's.  If  our  boys  go 
from  the  country  school  and  the  plough  to  the  city,  and 


264  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

there  rise  to  the  highest  mercantile  standing,  they  must 
be  forearmed  and  made  ready  by  sound  principles  for 
the  new  sphere  of  their  activity.  Nowhere  do  men 
change  employments  so  often  and  so  entirely  as  here. 
Nowhere,  therefore,  can  we  calculate  so  little  on  fixed 
habits  within  callings ;  nowhere  can  we  be  less  sure 
that  the  moral  tone  will  not  degenerate.  Happily, 
nowhere  is  there  so  much  hope  that  the  moral  tone 
may  improve. 

Theodore  Dwight  Woolsey. 


OF  REASONING. 


If  it  were  inquired  what  is  to  be  regarded  as  the 
most  appropriate  intellectual  occupation  of  man  as 
man,  what  would  be  the  answer.?  The  statesman  is 
engaged  with  political  affairs ;  the  soldier  with  mili- 
tary ;  the  mathematician  with  the  properties  of  num- 
bers and  magnitudes ;  the  merchant  with  commercial 
concerns,  etc.  But  in  what  are  all  and  each  of  these 
employed.'*     Evidently  in  reasoning. 

Richard  Whately. 


OF  DRAWING. 

While  treating  of  the  education  of  the  perceptive 
powers,  I  should  have  spoken  of  drawing  as  an  impor- 
tant auxiliary.  The  acquisition  of  this  accomplishment 
calls  into  exercise  the  most  earnest  use  of  the  percep- 
tive powers.  It  gives  accuracy  to  the  eye.  It  develops 
the  taste,  and  teaches  to  select  and  dwell  upon  the  ele- 
ments of  the  beautiful.  With  proper  instruction,  this 
delightful  art  might  be  learned  as  universally  as  pen- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS.  265 

manship.  That  we  could  make  every  pupil  an  accom- 
plished draftsman,  I  do  not  affirm,  any  more  than  that 
we  can  make  every  one  a  finished  penman.  We  should, 
however,  improve  the  perceptive  powers  and  the  taste 
of  all ;  and  wherever  a  talent  for  the  fine  arts  has  been 
bestowed,  we  should  thus  arouse  it  from  its  slumber, 
and  place  it  at  once  in  the  course  of  development. 

Francis  Wayland. 


REFINED   TASTES. 

It  has  been  doubted  whether  painting  and  music 
should  be  taught  to  young  ladies,  because  much  time 
is  requisite  to  bring  them  to  any  considerable  degree 
of  perfection,  and  they  are  not  immediately  useful. 
Though  these  objections  have  weight,  yet  they  are 
founded  on  too  limited  a  view  of  the  objects  of  educa- 
tion. They  leave  out  the  important  consideration  of 
forming  the  character.  I  should  not  consider  it  an 
essential  point  that  the  music  of  a  lady's  piano  should 
rival  that  of  her  master's,  or  that  her  drawing-room 
should  be  decorated  with  her  own  paintings  rather 
than  those  of  others ;  but  it  is  the  intrinsic  advantage 
which  she  might  derive  from  the  refinement  of  herself 
that  would  induce  me  to  recommend  an  attention  to 
these  elegant  pursuits.  The  harmony  of  sound  has 
a  tendency  to  produce  a  correspondent  harmony  of 
soul ;  and  that  art,  which  obliges  us  to  study  nature 
in  order  to  imitate  her,  often  enkindles  the  latent 
spark  of  taste,  of  sensibility  for  her  beauties,  till  it 
glows  to  adoration  for  their  author  and  a  refined  love 
of  all  his  works. 

Mrs.  Emma  Willard. 


266  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

HIGHER  EDUCATION   OF  WOMEN. 

A  REFORM  in  the  present  methods  of  educating  young 
women,  which  I  take  it  for  granted  is  the  meaning  of 
the  demand  for  a  higher  education  of  women,  can  only 
be  brought  about  by  parents  giving  the  same  care  and 
attention  to  the  education  of  their  daughters  that  they 
give  to  that  of  their  sons.  This  will  require  an  aban- 
donment of  the  idea  that  a  girl's  education  is  to  be  com- 
pleted before  she  is  eighteen  or  twenty  years  old.  It 
will  require  a  protest  against  the  veneering  processes  of 
our  fashionable  schools,  and  the  cramming  methods  of 
our  normal  college.  It  will  require  for  the  present, 
as  the  most  practicable  solution  of  the  difficulty  of  pro- 
curing the  best  training  for  our  young  women,  —  at  all 
events,  for  those  who  desire  it,  — that  our  colleges  should 
furnish  the  same  privileges  for  girls  that  they  do  for 
boys.  This  does  not  necessarily  involve  co-education. 
It  can  be  accomplished  without  it  or  with  it,  as  the 
question  of  convenience  or  expense  may  determine. 
The  just  and  reasonable  demand  of  woman  is,  that  it 
shall  be  made  possible  for  her  to  procure  as  good  an 
education  and  as  thorough  a  training  in  any  branch  of 
knowledge  as  it  is  possible  for  a  man  to  acquire ;  and 
until  this  demand  is  complied  with,  either  by  opening 
the  doors  of  our  colleges  and  universities  to  women,  or 
by  establishing  colleges  especially  for  them,  we  shall  be 
perpetuating  a  grievous  wrong,  and  at  the  same  time 
neglecting  one  of  the  surest  means  of  increasing  the 
sum  of  human  happiness  and  the  possibilities  of  human 
energy. 

Andrew  D.  White. 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS,  267 

ORIGINAL  PAINTINGS. 

..  Search  into  things  yourselves,  as  well  as  learn  them 
from  others  ;  be  acquainted  with  men  as  well  as  books  ; 
X  learn  all  things  as  much  as  you  can  at  first  hand ;  and 
"tiet  as  many  of  your  ideas  as  possible  be  the  representa- 
tions of  things,  and  not  merely  the  representations  of 
other  men's  ideas.  Thus  your  soul,  like  some  noble 
building,  shall  be  richly  furnished  with  original  paint- 
ings, and  not  with  mere  copies.  Isaac  watts. 


MANUAL  TRAINING-SCHOOLS. 

I  CLAIM  that  the  manual  training-school  furnishes  the 
solution  of  the  problem  of  labor  versus  capital  The  new 
education  gives  more  complete  development,  versatility, 
and  adaptability  to  circumstance.  No  liberally  trained 
workman  can  be  a  slave  to  a  method,  or  dependent  upon 
the  demand  for  a  particular  article  or  kind  of  labor. 
With  every  new  tool  and  new  process  the  cultivated  arti- 
san rises  to  new  spheres  of  usefulness  and  to  new  dignity. 
In  earlier  times,  when  the  day-laborer  was  little  better 
than  a  machine,  with  no  freedom  or  amplitude,  almost 
helpless  and  useless  away  from  his  crank,  progress  was 
well  typified  by  a  ruthless  car,  which,  with  most  unequal 
and  cruel  pressure,  ground  to  powder  the  unfortunates 
under  its  wheels,  who  had  no  elasticity,  no  power  of 
escape. 

When  the  new  education  shall  have  fully  come,  prog- 
ress will  be  better  represented  by  the  ship  of  state, 
which  rests  gently  and  gracefully  upon  all,  without  in- 
equality or  oppression.     Rigidity  has  given   place  to 


268  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 

fluidity.  The  elements  yield  and  do  not  break.  Thus, 
without  friction  or  oppression,  and  hence  without'  bitter- 
ness and  strife,  shall  our  progress  be  made.  The 'sense 
of  hardship  and  wrong  will  never  come,  and  bloody  riots 
will  cease  when  workmen  have  such  mechanical  culture 
that  the  invention  of  a  new  tool,  a  grand  labor-saving 
machine,  only  adds  new  power  and  dignity  to  their  skil- 
ful hands. 

C.  M.  Woodward. 

THE  TEMPERANCE   REFORM   IN   SCHOOLS. 

"  The  burgomasters  of  the  future  "  are  the  boys  whom 
you  will  welcome  back  from  their  vacation  rambles  and 
exploits,  in  a  few  weeks  from  now ;  the  merry  girls  now 
engaged  in  picnic  games  and  seaside  pastimes  are  to  be 
the  wives  and  mothers  of  the  Republic's  second  century. 
This  temperance  reform  means  more,  for  their  future 
weal  or  woe,  than  any  other  to  which  their  teachers* 
influence  can,  by  any  possibility,  be  given ;  and  the 
opinions  they  form  at  school,  by  which  the  example  of 
their  lives  will  be  controlled,  are  of  more  import  this 
day  to  the  land  we  love  than  all  the  fine-spun  "  issues  " 
on  which  political  parties  are  impotently  endeavoring  to 
feed.  The  relation  of  the  teacher  to  this  reform  is  then, 
important,  intimate,  vital.  He  moulds  in  clay,  while 
the  temperance  agitators  are  pounding  away  on  marble. 
He  forms,  while  they  almost  vainly  endeavor  to  re-form. 
It  is  in  his  power  to  organize  victory  for  the  future  of  a 
noble  cause,  by  the  justness  of  his  arguments  and  the 
quiet  persuasion  of  his  example.  The  teacher  has  a  fair 
field  comparatively  to  contend  with.  There  is  hardly  a 
parent,  even  though  he  be  himself  a  drunkard  or  a  mod- 


EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


269 


erate  drinker,  who  would  object  to  have  his  children, 
taught  what  he  will  be  quite  certain  to  admit  is,  for 
them,  the  "more  excellent  way  "  of  never  beginning  to 
drink  at  all.  In  this  age  of  science,  none  can  object  to 
the  chemical  and  physiological  lessons  which  indicate 
that  total  abstinence  is  consistent  with  nature  and  with 
reason,  and  all  must  commend  the  inculcation  of  that 
law  of  kindness  which  "  counts  in  "  our  brother's  danger 
along  with  our  own,  in  making  up  the  summary  of  rea- 
sons why  a  boy  or  a  girl  should  "  touch  not,  taste  not, 
handle  not." 

Miss  Frances  E.  Willard. 


It  has  seemed  to  me  that  the  highest  range  of  human 
talent  is  distinguished,  not  by  the  power  of  doing  well 
any  one  particular  thing,  but  by  the  power  of  doing  well 
anything  which  we  resolutely  determine  to  do. 

Francis  Wayland. 


INSTRUCTORS  IN  JUSTICE. 

As  the  children  in  the  schools  of  Gi^ece  were  trained 
in  the  knowledge  of  learning  and  liberal  arts,  the  chil- 
dren of  the  Persians  attended  their  schools  for  the  sake 
of  learning  justice.  In  order  to  accomplish  this  object 
the  more  quickly,  it  was  not  thought  sufficient  to  ac- 
custom only  their  ears  to  instruction  in  justice,  but  they 
were  taught  to  give  just  opinions  on  all  matters  which 
came  up  among  them,  and  to  fix  upon  the  proper  punish- 
ment for  every  error.  Thus  the  teachers,  as  public  in- 
structors in  justice,  devoted  a  large  part  of  the  day  to 
hearing  and  correcting  these  opinions  of  the  children. 

Xbnophon. 


270  EDUCATIONAL  MOSAICS. 


TALENT  AND  VIRTUE. 


Great  ill  is  an  achievement  of  great  powers ; 

Plain  sense  but  rarely  leads  us  far  astray. 

Reason  the  means,  affections  choose  our  end ; 

Means  have  no  merit,  if  our  end  amiss. 

If  wrong  our  hearts,  our  heads  are  right  in  vain  ; 

Hearts  are  proprietors  of  all  applause, 

Right  ends  and  means  make  wisdom  :  worldly-wise 

Is  but  half-witted,  at  its  highest  praise. 

Pygmies  are  pygmies  still,  though  perched  on  Alps, 

And  pyramids  are  pyramids  in  vales. 

Each  man  makes  his  own  stature,  builds  himself : 

Virtue  alone  outbuilds  the  pyramids  : 

Her  monuments  shall  last,  when  Egypt's  fall. 

Edward  Young. 


As  words  may  be  considered  the  garment  of  thoughts, 
so  may  language  collectively  be  considered  a  picture  of 
the  soul.  And  sipce,  therefore,  thou  findest  pleasure  in 
adorning  thy  body,  do  thou  not  bestow  less  care  upon 
thy  speech,  which  is  the  body  of  thy  mind. 

ZCHOKEE. 


Man  should  act  worthily  of  heaven. 
In  this  world  he  should  do  good,  out  of  a  pure  heart. 
He  should  be  pure  in  thought,  word,  and  action. 
He  should  strive  only  after  what  is  morally  good. 
He  should  be  holy,  speak  truth,  and  do  no  wickedness. 

Zoroaster. 


ALPHABETICAL   LIST   OF  AUTHORS. 


Abbott,  Jacob,  29. 
Adams,  C  F.,  Jr.,  16,  26. 
Adams,  Herbert  B,,  19. 
Addison,  Joseph,  33. 
Adler,  Felix,  30. 
Agricola,  31. 
Alden,  Joseph,  25. 
Anderson,  Martin  B,,  18,  21. 
Andrews,  I.  W.,  23. 
Angell,  James  B.,  23. 
Arbogast,  26. 
Aretinus,  19. 
Argyll,  Duke  of,  17,  32. 
Aristotle,  15,  17. 
Armstrong,  S.  C,  32. 
Arnold,  Matthew,  15,  23,  28. 
Arnold,  Thomas,  15,  31. 
Arnott,  Neil,  32. 
Ascham,  Roger,  25. 
Austin,  Sarah,  2i. 

Bacon,  Francis,  33,  45. 
Bain,  Alexander,  34,  41. 
Baldwin,  J.,  35. 
Bancroft,  George,  37,  38,  44. 
Bardeen,  C.  W.,  46. 
Barnard,  F,  A.  P.,  48. 
Barnard,  Henry,  36. 
Barrow,  Isaac,  39,  50. 
Bartlett,  S.  C,  49. 
Bascom,  John,  38. 


Basedow,  J.  B.,  42. 
Beecher,  H.  W.,  49. 
Bicknell,  Thomas  W.,  48. 
Bonaparte,  Napoleon,  43. 
Bouton,  Eugene,  43. 
Bowen,  E.  E.,  39,  51. 
Boyden,  Albert  G.,  37. 
Brooks,  Edward,  50. 
Brougham,  Lord,  47. 
Brown,  Dr.  John,  51. 
Browne,  Sir  Thomas,  46,  47. 
Browning,  Oscar,  34. 
Buchanan,  J.  R.,  45. 
Bulow,  Baroness,  41. 

Calderwood,  Henry,  68. 
Calkins,  N.  A.,  66. 
Carlyle,  Thomas,  58,  59,  64. 
Carter,  Franklin,  69. 
Chace,  Elizabeth  B.,  54. 
Chadbourne,  Paul  A.,  63. 
Channing,  W.  E.,  56,  63,  69. 
Charlemagne,  70. 
Chesterfield,  Lord,  54,  60. 
Cicero,  62,  63,  66. 
Clarke,  James  Freeman,  57. 
Clay,  Henry,  62. 
Coffin,  Charles  Carleton,  65. 
Coleridge,  Samuel  T.,  53. 
Comenius,  John  Amos,  55,  67. 
Compayre,  Gabriel,  60,  65,  67, 


2/2 


LIST  OF  AUTHORS. 


Condillac,  55,  69. 
Condorcet,  64. 
Confucius,  70. 
Cornwallis,  Caroline  F.,  55. 
Corthell,  T.  W.,  61. 
Currie,  James,  58. 

Darling,  Henry,  72,  76. 
Dawson,  N.  H.  R.,  70. 
Descartes,  79, 
Dickinson,  J.  W.,  72,  75. 
Diderot,  78. 
Diesterweg,  G.,  75. 
Duclos,  73. 
Dunton,  Larkin,  73. 
Dupanloup,  77. 
Dutton,  S.  T.,  77. 
Dwight,  M.  A.,  74. 
Dwight,  Timothy,  71. 

Eaton,  Jolm,  84. 

Edmunds,  George  F.,  87. 

Edson,  A.  W.,  79. 

Edwards,  Richard,  83. 

Eliot,-  Charles  W.,  82. 

Emerson,  Ralph  Waldo,  81,  87. 

Erasmus,  Z"},. 

Erskine,  Thomas,  81. 

Eschines,  85. 

Everett,  Edward,  79,  85,  87. 

Faraday,  Michael,  91,  95. 
Felton,  C.  C,  88. 
Fitch,  J.  G.,  92,  97. 
Foster,  John,  90. 
Franklin,  Benjamin,  89. 
I  Frederick  the  Great,  96. 
Freeman,  Alice  E.,  90. 
Froebel,  93,  99. 
Froude,  J.  A.,  93,  94,  97. 
Fuller,  Thomas,  94,  96. 


Gallaudet,  Thomas  H.,  99. 
Garfield,  James  A.,  100. 
Gates,  Merrill  Edwards,  ill. 
Gibbon,  Edward,  108. 
Gilman,  Daniel  C,  103,  104. 
Gilmore,  J,  H.,  102. 
Godwin,  Parke,  iio. 
Goethe,  112. 
Gray,  Asa,  109. 
Green,  Arnold,  106. 
Gregory,  D.  S.,  105. 
Gregory,  John  M.,  lOl. 
Grimke,  T.  S.,  108. 
Guizot,  100. 
Gurney,  Joseph  John,  105. 

Hagar,  Daniel  B.,  113. 

Hale,  Edward  Everett,  125. 

Hale,  Sir  Matthew,  121. 

Hales,  J.  W.,  121. 

Hamerton,  Philip  Gilbert,  122,  127. 

Hancock,  John,  113. 

Hare,  J.  C,  116,  125,  133. 

Harris,  William  T.,  123,  131. 

Harrison,  Frederick,  130. 

Haven,  E.  O.,  119. 

Hazlitt,  William,  141. 

Hegel,  113. 

Helps,  Arthur,.  118,  134. 

Higginson,  Thos.  Wentworth,  123. 

Hill,  Thomas,  138. 

Hilliard,  George  S.,  127. 

Hinsdale,  B.  A.,  1 14. 

Hodge,  Archibald  Alexander,  134. 

Hofmann,  August  Wilhelm,  140, 

Holt,  H.  E.,  139. 

Hood,  Paxton,  119,  137. 

Hopkins,  Mark,  115. 

Howe,  Julia  Ward,  126. 

Hudson,  Henry  N.,  137. 


LIST  OF  AUTHORS. 


273 


Hunt,  T.  W.,  136. 
Hunter,  Thomas,  133. 
Huntington,  Frederic  D.,  Il6,  135. 
Huxley,  Thomas  H.,  119,  127,  129. 

Jacobi,  Friedrich,  141. 
Johnson,  Samuel,  142. 
Joynes,  Edward  S.,  141. 

Kant,  Immanuel,  143,  144. 
Kay,  David,  144,  146. 
Kendrick,  A.  C,  145. 
Kingsley,  Charles,  144. 
Klemm,  L.  R.,  143. 

La  Chalotais,  150. 
Lakanal,  Joseph,  150. 
Lalor,  John,  150. 
Landon,  Joseph,  146. 
Langford,  J.  A.,  153. 
Laurie,  S.  S.,  147,  156. 
Lavater,  154. 
Leibnitz,  G.  W.,  152. 
Lessing,  G.  E.,  148. 
Lewis,  Tayler,  154. 
Lincoln,  J.  L.,  154. 
Livermore,  Mary  A.,  149. 
Locke,  John,  148,  153. 
Lowell,  James  Russell,  152. 
Luther,  Martin,  156. 
Lyly,  John,  148,  154. 
Lyon,  Mary,  149. 

Mac  Arthur,  Arthur,  171. 
Macaulay,  Thomas  Babington,  160. 
Madison,  James,  173. 
Mann,  Horace,  i6l,  173. 
Marble,  A.  P.,  172. 
Marcel,  C,,  163. 
Mason,  John,  164. 
Masson,  David,  164. 


Mathews,  William,  169. 
McCosh,  James,  167,  168. 
Melanchthon,  Philip,  163. 
Mill,  John  Stuart,  157,  159,  164. 
Miller,  Hugh,  159. 
Milton,  John,  162. 
Mitchell,  Maria,  170. 
Montaigne,  Michel,  161,  1 71. 
Morell,  J.  D.,  157. 
Morgan,  Thomas  J,,  174. 
Morley,  John,  157,  161. 
Mowry,  William  A.,  168. 
Munger,  T.  T.,  165. 

Nicole,  176. 
Niemeyer,  177. 
Northrup,  B.  G.,  176. 

Olmstead,  Denison,  179. 
Orcutt,  Hiram,  178. 

Paget,  James,  191. 
Painter,  F.  V.  N.,  195. 
Palgrave,  E.  T.,  192. 
Palmer,  F.  B.,  182. 
Palmer,  G.  H.,  183. 
Pape-Carpentier,  Madame,  189. 
Parker,  Francis  W.,  194. 
Parker,  Theodore,  187. 
Payne,  Joseph,  ^180. 
Payne,  William  H.,  190,  193. 
Peabody,  A.  P.,  185. 
Pestalozzi,  187,  189. 
Philbrick,  John  D.,  189. 
Philo,  194. 
Plato,  188,  193,  196. 
Plutarch,  182,  186. 
Porter,  Noah,  180,  190. 

Quick,  Robert  Herbert,  197. 
Quintilian,  197,  198. 


274 


LIST  OF  AUTHORS. 


Rabelais,  Francois,  201. 
Reymond,  E.  du  Bois,  202. 
Reynolds,  Sir  Joshua,  199. 
Richardson,  Charles  F.,  208. 
Richter,  Jean  Paul,  201. 
Robertson,  Frederick  W.,  210. 
Robinson,  E.  G.,  206. 
Robinson,- Otis  H.,  204. 
Rosenkranz,  J.  K.  F.,  203. 
Rousseau,  J.  J.,  201,  202,  206. 
Rueckert,  199. 
Ruskin;  John,  205. 

Sanborn,  Kate,  233. 

Sand,  George,  234. 

Schiller,  J.  C.  F.,  220. 

Schopenhauer,"  Arthur,  225,  228. 

Sears,  Barnas,  212. 

Seaver,  E.  I^.,  211. 

Sedgwick,  Catherine  M,,  236. 

Seelye,  JuUus  H.,  237. 

Seneca,  228,  234. 

Serbati,  Antonio  Rosmini,  236. 

Shaftesbury,  Earl  of,  2H. 

Shedd,  W.  G.  T.,  226. 

Sheldon,  W.  E.,  216. 

Short,  Bishop,  230, 

Sill,  E.  R.,  223. 

Simcox,  Edith,  218. 

Smiles,  Samuel,  214,  215,  223. 

Southey,  Robert,  219. 

Spencer,  Herbert,  215, 222,  225, 229, 

Sprague,  Homer  B.,  230. 

Stanley,  Lord,  227. 

Steele,  J,  Dorman,  234. 

Stephen,  Sir  James,  227. 

Stockwell,  Thomas  B,,  220. 

Story,  Joseph,  232. 

Sully,  James,  217,  224. 

Swett,  John,  213. 


Talleyrand,  249,  253. 
Tarbell,  H.  S.,  247. 
Tate,  T.,  242. 
Taylor,  Isaac,  245. 
Taylor,  W.'  M.,  250. 
Temple,  Frederick,  238,  252. 
Tetlow,  John,  ,245. 
Thackeray,  W.  M.,  242, 
Thring,  Edward,  246. 
Tillotson,  Archbishop,  243. 
Tilton,  F.  W.,  240. 
Todhunter,  I.,  246. 
Tourjee,  Eben,  248. 
Tyler,  William  S.,  243. 
Tyndall,  John,  240,  247,  249. 

Vincent,  J.  H.,  252. 
Von  Gentz,  253. 

Walker,  Francis  A.,  262. 
Watts,  Isaac,. 267. 
Wayland,  Francis,  254,  264,  269. 
Whately,  Richard,  264. 
Whewell,  William,  256,  261. 
White,  Andrew  D.,  266. 
White,  E.  E.,  259. 
Wilberforce,  William,  254. 
Wilkinson,  W.  C,  260. 
Willard,  Emma,  265. 
Willard,  Frances  E,,  268. 
Wilson,  J.  M.,  258. 
Winship,  A.  Ef,,  254. 
Woodward,  C.  M.,  267. 
Woolsey,  Theodore  Dwight,  263. 
Wyttenbach,  258. 

Xenophon,  269. 

Young,  Edward,  270. 

Zchokee,  270. 
Zoroaster 


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